4 tips to deal with late rent

Tenants falling behind on rent payments is a dreaded thing for landlords. With the cost of living rising and budgets being squeezed, it’s only realistic to assume some tenants may struggle to pay their rent on time in the coming months.

Depending on the tenant, late rent could be an unusual thing you haven’t experienced with them before. If, overall, the tenant is good, you may be wondering, “What are some polite ways to ask my tenant to pay late rent?”.

If so, in this article, the Waterfords Lettings & Property Management team share their top tips on how to politely ask a tenant to pay late rent.

1.  Take a Moment to Assess

Before you do anything, take a moment to assess the situation. Ask yourself a few questions before you proceed any further, including things like:

• Is this a one-off late or a consecutive month of missed rent payments?
• Is this rare for your tenant?
• Are they a good tenant, overall?
• How emotional do you feel right now?

If you’re feeling annoyed about the late rent, take a moment to calm down before speaking to your tenant. While late rent is annoying, dealing with the situation in a level-headed way is always better in the long run.

Likewise, taking time to think about what’s happened can help you assess whether the situation warrants something more serious than a polite reminder.

2.  Send a Written Reminder

A polite way to remind a tenant to pay rent is to simply send them a short text or email. Keep it brief, friendly and objective.

As an example, include a warm greeting, remind the tenant about when rent was due and ask them to pay at their earliest convenience.

If you like, you can also mention that they can give you a call to discuss if they have a problem paying. This way, you’re keeping the lines of communication open to hopefully catch any issues early.

3.  Speak to the Tenant

If you don’t get a reply or the message you get back isn’t satisfactory, sending another text likely won’t fix the problem.

Instead, it may be best to give the tenant a call or make an appointment to visit them in person.

When you speak to them, ask things like:

• Are they okay?
• Why is the rent late?
• Is the due date the issue? (for example, has their payday changed and do they now get paid after the due date?)
• Do they think the issue will continue long-term or is it a one-off?

Speaking to the tenant can give you more information about why the rent is late and when you can expect a payment. It also provides a great opportunity to problem-solve and come up with a solution together.

4.  Ask a Letting Agent for Help

If you don’t want (or know how) to have the awkward conversation with your tenant to chase up late rent, then you don’t have to!

Instead, seek help from a professional letting agent to have the conversation for you. An experienced agent will know how to politely approach your tenant about late rent and can help problem-solve to avoid long-term issues.

Enquire Today

At Waterfords Estate Agents, we’re your local lettings experts in Camberley, Chobham, Fleet and Yateley. Our letting agent services are friendly, professional, and tailored to all types of landlords in Camberley, Chobham, Fleet and Yateley.

Get in touch today for a chat with our team about how we can help you with managing late rent on 01252 786064 or email lettings@waterfords.co.uk