As a Stone Oak rental property owner, you may eventually receive a request from a tenant to make a partial rent payment. While it might be tempting to accept this request, thinking that something is better than nothing, accepting even one partial rent payment can lead to several issues in the future. Although there are ways to accept a partial rent payment while minimizing risks, for most landlords, the best course of action is to take a firm stance and insist that tenants pay their rent in full.
Late Fee Disputes
Tenants may suppose they can avoid being charged late fees or other penalties listed in their lease by paying a partial rent payment. However, anything less than a full payment should still be subject to the same penalties that would arise if no payment was made. Few tenants want late fees and may object or be hesitant to pay. If your tenant attempts to challenge that late fee in court, there’s a solid chance that the judge will side with your tenant regardless of what your lease says.
Fair Housing Laws
Accepting partial rent payments from one tenant but not another also poses the possibility of a discrimination lawsuit. Federal Fair Housing laws are created to protect tenants in some protected classes from being treated unfairly by landlords. If you deny a tenant’s request to make a partial rent payment, and they later see that you allowed a different tenant to do so, they could argue in court that you’ve discriminated against them. Regardless of whether you effectively defend yourself, you’ll end up paying for it in both legal fees and a damaged reputation.
Maintaining Boundaries
If you’ve ever heard the saying, “Give them an inch, and they’ll take a mile,” you understand how challenging it can be to re-establish clear boundaries with certain tenants after making an exception to the rules. If you allow your tenant to make a late or partial payment without penalty once, there’s a strong chance they will do it again and may even ask for more time or flexibility in the future. Additionally, they might start to believe that since you overlooked one provision of the lease, you will likely ignore other violations as well. To prevent this issue with boundary-testing tenants, it is essential to clearly define your expectations in your lease documents and stick to them consistently.
Eviction Delays
Should the situation become a worst-case scenario and you find you must evict a tenant, accepting a partial rent payment can make a real mess of the eviction process. In many states, accepting even one dollar of rent payment from a tenant after you’ve started an eviction will void the process completely. Not only will you have to start the full eviction process over again from the very beginning, but you will be stuck, unable to collect back rent payments while the eviction process takes its course. As relations with your tenant will surely deteriorate, the whole scenario is likely to become increasingly difficult for everyone over time.
Navigating Partial Payments
By good fortune, there are some proactive things you can do to abolish some of the most prevalent risks associated with partial rent payments. These include:
Setting Clear Expectations. Make sure to include your rent payment policy and your policy on partial rent payments in your lease documents. This will help you clearly communicate your expectations to your tenants and reduce the likelihood that they will try to make a partial payment.- Get it in Writing. If you choose to accept a one-time partial payment, put it in writing. Provide your tenant with a Notice of Nonpayment of Rent that outlines the terms of the partial payment and any late charges. Be sure to explain the consequences of not paying the remaining balance as agreed.e remaining past-due rent as agreed.
- Accept Multiple Forms of Payment. If your tenant does not have cash available, one way to avoid partial rent payments is to allow them to pay their rent using a credit card or another payment method. Various modern payment options offer instant transfers and can provide your tenant with a convenient alternative when needed. However, be sure not to accept personal checks, especially post-dated ones. Some tenants may try to “float” a bad check to buy time, but if the check bounces, you will end up facing bank charges.
Managing rental properties involves many challenges, and coping with partial rent payments is just a small part of the job. It’s a demanding task that requires determination and resilience. If you want to free up your time to focus on other activities, consider hiring Real Property Management LoneStar to take care of the daily responsibilities associated with your properties.
Our Stone Oak property managers will engage directly with your tenants to ensure that things are done professionally, legally, and efficiently, giving you time and total peace of mind. Contact us online today to learn more.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.
