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Well, it sounds like your tenant has been paying each month, very late, but is paying the late fees without complaint. We had a tenant like this recently. I have to say that as long as they do pay before the end of the month and they pay the late fees (ours are $10/day for each late day) without complaint, it is a good deal for the LL, as you are getting the extra income. And yes, I understand that you also have the stress of not knowing if this will be the month they don't pay at all. I still think it is a good deal as long as you don't let them get more than 30 days in arrears. At around $200 in late fees every month, it doesn't take very many months to have paid an extra month's rent, so if you have to evict eventually, you may still end up in the black.
But that isn't the question here. You should definitely not wait until the move out inspection to contact. You need to call repeatedly for rent. By telling him that you are going to terminate the lease, he may now decide not to pay anymore at all, figuring you will take it out of the deposit. You have to decide at what point you want to start eviction proceedings. Is his deposit enough to cover 2 months rent (or did he pay last month up front)? If not, you may come up short. I would suggest calling every day until rent is paid, but that is just me. You could also consider posting a warning on the door that if rent is not paid immediately, a 3 day (or whatever your local norm is) notice to move will be served. But be ready to follow up with that if you do it.
Re: the grace period. For your next lease, you absolutely can remove the grace period, assuming there isn't a state law that says you have to have one.
And for move out, you are correct. Receipts for services with reasonable rates are acceptable. You can even do the work yourself as long as you charge a reasonable rate. One comment: You mentioned nails in the walls. Be aware that as long as there isn't an excessive number and there is not excessive damage done by the nails, that can be considered normal wear and tear and shouldn't be charged to the tenant. Or at least that is the norm in my area.
For your original post asking about wear and tear, here is my opinion:
Broken storm door: If it was brand new, it could have been a faulty install, questionable whether it was damage or not, if you can prove it was damage, then it is a valid charge.
Stained carpet: Damage, not normal
Scratched hardwood: Probably normal, unless excessive or deep
Anything dirty: Not normal
Nails in walls: Normal if a reasonable number and no extra damage, and in sheetrock only, not normal if in woodwork/trim
Re: the grace period. For your next lease, you absolutely can remove the grace period, assuming there isn't a state law that says you have to have one.
Just a thought on this one from a tenant's point of view, keeping in mind that I am the sort of tenant who reads and honors my lease and takes care of the properties where I rent - I would probably not sign a lease that included no grace period. Although I am not in the habit of utilizing it, in my area a 3 to 5 day grace period is customary, and I would be very wary of a lease that did not conform to the local customs. So yes, it's true that unless your state requires you to have one, you can remove it, but you should consider whether the grace period is really the problem or if the problem is that the penalty for being late past the grace period has not been properly spelled out and enforced.
I do not mean to say this personally to anybody, let's make it clear, please. It is simply a general comment.
Obviously one has to abide by rules of one's state/region at all times.
I would be uncomfortable with a tenant that has a problem with no grace period.
If I think I will not be able to mail a check in a timely manner so that my LL will receive it as previously agreed, I simply mail it in advance.
It is annoying and uncomfortable not receiving a check when you know the individual is living under your roof - literally - for free.
Just a thought on this one from a tenant's point of view, keeping in mind that I am the sort of tenant who reads and honors my lease and takes care of the properties where I rent - I would probably not sign a lease that included no grace period. Although I am not in the habit of utilizing it, in my area a 3 to 5 day grace period is customary, and I would be very wary of a lease that did not conform to the local customs. So yes, it's true that unless your state requires you to have one, you can remove it, but you should consider whether the grace period is really the problem or if the problem is that the penalty for being late past the grace period has not been properly spelled out and enforced.
I have NOT rented to people because they have asked how many days was the grace period...NOT a good sign...
I do not give a grace period... It's nothing but an opening to be late every month....longer than the grace period is.
And I have no problem that someone would not want to rent from me because of that...
I have NOT rented to people because they have asked how many days was the grace period...NOT a good sign...
I do not give a grace period... It's nothing but an opening to be late every month....longer than the grace period is.
And I have no problem that someone would not want to rent from me because of that...
Maybe the people who asked about the grace period were habitual late payers, or maybe they just wanted to know what the grace period was because it is customary in your area to include one? That you would refuse to rent to someone just for asking this question only further reinforces my belief that private landlords are often unreasonable. Having a couple of days is a nice safety net just in case, and as I said before, I am not in the habit of utilizing it - I generally pay several days in advance. I read and follow the terms of my lease, I tend to renew a lease multiple years which reduces turnover costs, I always give the notice outlined in the lease when I am leaving, I take care of my unit, and I always get my entire deposit back. My rental history is so good that our current place did not require that we put down a deposit at all. Which is a safe bet on their part since I will promptly pay for any damages I may have caused since I am ethically obligated to do so - they don't NEED to hold onto my money to ensure that they are paid in such an event. There are not a lot of tenants out there like me who honor their contracts and take care of the property that they rent, but if I even asked you about the grace period which every rental contract I have ever signed included, you would just assume I was a habitually late loser and disqualify me. Well, that's OK, it's your loss.
Tilli, I think Houston is right, to an extent it is somehow an indication of a tenant who even before signing the lease is already thinking about paying rent late
Unfortunately not all tenants are like you said you are ... and as for rental references, lI have learned they are worthless.
Let me just put my 2 cents here... I have contacted several former LLs before I signed the lease with my current tenant and they said "great guy, always paid and very respectful"... and he has paid more than 50% of his lease months late or within the grace period, and even though he promptly contacts me when he needs me it is impossible to find him when he is late in payments.
This obviously causes the worst impression with the LL. Technically the grace period is an acceptable period, but who likes to go check the mailbox everyday hoping and praying the check will be there?!
I know people will say "you gave the grace period, live with it" but I honestly thought this would be for a major emergency (got very sick, sudden business trip, etc.) and not something that would be used as a legitimate excuse every month to pay the rent late.
I completely agree that a grace period shouldn't be used every month, it's there to handle a delay in the mail or the random emergency, not to be some sort of financial crutch for people with poor money management skills. Maybe you could consult an attorney to modify the grace period so that it can only be utilized so many times per lease period? That would retain the grace period if it is customary in your area, without allowing the tenant to abuse the provision. Just a thought.
Of course, I am not your tenant and I personally couldn't care less what provisions you exclude from your lease, I just wanted you to know that this good tenant would be suspicious of a lease that was different from the customary form, and I doubt that I am the only one who'd feel that way. Tenants like your current one don't care what the lease says because they plan to ignore it anyway.
I agree with you about not using the grace period every month... and I must add that if the LL and tenant do not minimally trust each other as being serious about the lease maybe they should not even sign it in the first place. Maybe I trusted the former references and it was a lesson learned to completely ignore them the next time.
If the tenant is not going to respect the grace period or always use it, I get it that the sheer question "what about the grace period?" would make a LL uncomfortable.
However, other than "not being customary in a certain area" why would a tenant be uncomfortable about not having a grace period as we agree it is just supposed to be used under extreme circumstances, which are anyway unlikely to happen?
I think most tenants - I am not talking about you and honestly could not care less as you mentioned - do not realize this is very much a commercial relationship. If you do not mail you gas/electricity/water bill on time, there is no grace period. You get a late fee and no excuse. Why would that have to be different on a lease?
I just want to understand that. As a tenant (which I am, btw) I pay my rent and do not whine. If I have an unexpected event I will exceptionally use my grace period as a privilege given by my LL and not something I am entitled to.
If you do not mail you gas/electricity/water bill on time, there is no grace period.
Credit cards do customarily have grace periods, though, and so do leases - at least here they do.
Quote:
However, other than "not being customary in a certain area" why would a tenant be uncomfortable about not having a grace period as we agree it is just supposed to be used under extreme circumstances, which are anyway unlikely to happen?
I am not primarily concerned with the lack of grace period per se, but rather that a LL who would drop a customary provision in the lease such a grace period has probably changed other parts of the lease with a similar lack of regard to what is customary. I would feel like I needed to examine the lease with a fine-tooth comb to search for anything else that's weird in there, but I would probably just move on to someone with a normal lease.
I don't think just bc the LL dropped the grace period he would have also changed something else. One thing does not necessarily imply the other.
The careful checking of the lease would be perfectly fine with me, but unfortunately the careful checking of the prospective tenant means nothing.
Even if he has a job (can be lost anytime), has references (God knows if they are true), etc. ultimately he fails payment, he fails payment.
Not to mention some tenants live in absolute filth. I am a tenant myself an cannot believe, for the life of me, some people can live that way. For that matter, it does not matter if I own or rent, it is where I live so I want it to be a clean, decent place.
No guarantee whatsoever that the tenant will pay correctly/take care of the property, whereas the LL is providing his part of the deal (a roof over he tenant's head, theoretically upon payment of monthly rent) from day one - and - if he cares for his property - he will keep good maintenance on it bc even if the tenant is far from ideal the property belongs to him (LL) and he absolutely wants to keep it in good shape.
Moreover, the LL has a huge headache to evict the tenant if he fails to honor his part (and in the meantime the LL is still honoring his), whereas the tenant can not honor his part by simply not writing a check at the right date.
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) from day one - and - if he cares for his property - he will keep good maintenance on it bc even if the tenant is far from ideal the property belongs to him (LL) and he absolutely wants to keep it in good shape.
