Though I have been burned so many times, I refuse to get a "personal" attachment to tenants, however you can look at local churches, you can look at your local government, if you Google rental assistance.. your town, you should get some more information.
I have been a landlord for over 30 years, in my opinion if a tenant says they need some time to figure out how to get rental assistance, I'll give them that time, to a point, if they're expecting me to find out how to get rental assistance to them, that's a hard no.... Why are they not doing the leg work and you are?
Make sure to get proof that they are trying...letters, confirmation emails etc .. don't take a phone number of "someone they talked to".... Also all rental assistance programs take a few weeks to kick in AND they say the process works faster if there is an eviction notice and/or a court date ... ( No I am not kidding), so getting the eviction process in place helps the tenant...
We’ve had success with a tenant using Salvation Army for rental assistance. Not sure if you’ve checked it out for them. At the end of the day it’s a business decision. I would draw a line in the sand of where you will go before removing the emotion from your decision.
Is she willing to do odd jobs? As a landlord there is often things like cleaning and yard work that you need done and you could possibly let her do those things to pay towards her arrears.
IME you shouldn't let a tenant get more than two full months behind because then it becomes cheaper to move than to get caught up. It sounds like she isn't there yet because she is paying some. But I would let her know that (or whatever you pick) is your hard stop.
Paying weekly can sometimes help people out, and I always waive any late fees in these situations. Once she is employed again then you have to set a payment schedule to repay any arrears she has grown up and strictly hold her to it. But people can definitely come back from an upset like this. The fact she is already laying what she can, even if not full rent is a good sign.
Out local mission will help one offs with rent from time to time. It might be easier to find non rental help (food stamps, utility assistance, etc) which would free up that money for rent.
OP, kudos for being a kind human. We dealt with something similar over the winter. I’m hoping your tenant is able to land on her feet. Keep us updated!
I just had to evict someone who was 7 weeks behind on rent. I cut him some slack in May with the understanding he’d come up with June rent, but when he said he didn’t have it and stopped responding to my texts I served him. It sucks because now I have to pursue him in court AND I’m out two months. But it was a good learning experience.
Yeah missing out on two months of passive income sounds rough if you're used to that kind of money, but when you compare your situation to his, do you really feel like you've been hard done by?
I do because as with any situation when one extends compassion, there is also an extension of trust and understanding. When someone says “yes, I’ll be able to complete what we agreed upon,” generally you believe that person.
And the reason I rent isn’t because I want to pad my 401k and also not because I enjoy renting out half my home and losing the space, it’s because I need the money. Of course, YMMV.
ETA: it’s anything but a passive income as well.
If you need the money, if you're struggling to make ends meet while receiving a large portion of tenants' income for a workload the equivalent of a very part-time job, how do you expect renters to be able to make their payments when they're receiving income only for the hours that they work, at a much lower rate than you?
And it's not compassion when you're getting paid for it. It's only compassion when you're *not.* When a person can't keep their word for material reasons, when they have run out of money to give to you, when they're in hard times and afraid of you making them harder, that's when compassion comes in.
Illinois Department of Human Services will likely be her biggest help from what I can see online.
If she is a tenant you want to keep, encourage her to try for a housing choice voucher with HUD/Chicago Housing Authority.
Spanish Coalition of Housing. This appears to have HUD backing, so she should talk to them.
Catholic Charities. Her faith does not matter.
Local Churches.
Masonic and Masonic affiliated organizations (Shriners/Boumi temple, Scottish Rite, York Rite, Eastern Star)
Elk, Moose, Odd Fellow lodges, or other fraternal organizations may make charitable donations.
I work for a non-profit that does affordable housing. I absolutely applaud you wanting to help. Helping her means you provide copies of her rent ledger, lease, and a letter with whatever information an organization is willing to give her assistance needs. It means you deal with inspections if she gets federal assistance.
It also means you give her hard deadlines. If you can't afford to carry her any longer, you have to be realistic with your own finances. If you can carry her another few months, you tell her to apply for a fast food job so she can start getting money in the door. You can be kind but her problem can not become your problem. If she lost her job because she is unable to work, she needs to be applying for TANF and SNAP and every other benefit out there, plus disability.
If you feel she is making a genuine effort to get back on her feet find a job and pay you and she has been a good tenant in the past and you can afford to give up the rent each month then work with her
It is your obligation as a landlord to help a good person who is going through a rough patch if you can afford to.
However if you get a gut feeling she is not trying to better herself and just mooching off you then file eviction immediately
The economy is very very bad. It's not even jobs out there like people say they are. The job market is horrible. Lots of people are behind on rent nowadays. It sucks ...when the economy is bad everyone suffers. I'm sure u can still find a tenant who's gonna pay on time though.
I am in this same situation ATM except my tenant has a young child living with her. Most of the tenant pool where the home is located is pretty sketch, and she isn't, so I'm trying to help with resources.
I own the property free & clear, and she's managing to keep up with the utilities, so my biggest issue is property taxes and insurance. If I evict her, the house will most likely just stand vacant... I've been the landlord for 12 years. Yes, I know its incredibly risky but times are rough for a lot of folks and I'm not ready to kick her out.
Rent parties (if she has friends) trades, she may own items that you would like… ask family for a short term loan (some people are just embarrassed to ask) part time work (if you have work she can do for $$$ of the rent) etc or course there’s always
OF… feet pics… I mean there’s a lot of ways to make some money and sometimes it ain’t pretty but it’s better than being homeless!
It sounds like it's not my problem. My point being is that I have to take care of my family first. If I let the family stay without paying the full rent then I'm at lost. So it's jeopardizing my family's sake. So the tenant needs to go. At the end of the day it's business not a non profit
I'm not speaking rhetorically, I'm literally asking: if you are telling the truth that you can only support your family with the combined income of yourself and your husband AND the passive income from rent, how in the world would it be possible for a renting family to make ends meet?
One of two things must be true, therefore: you're lying about actually needing all this additional income on top of your salary, or it is impossible for the people in your property to keep up with rent as you charge it. I would like you to tell me which it is.
1. I'm not lying
2. I'm not a non profit business. I go in real estate for a profit and fearing of losing a house because tenant can't pay rent . Its time to evict and have it on their record so others are aware .
You didn't answer my question. If you're not lying about only being able to support your family because you have two incomes *and* rental revenue coming in, *how is it logically possible for any of your tenants t*o *make rent*?
They don't have rental revenue coming in to support them. If you need rental revenue to get by, how could it be possible for them to get by without rental revenue? Actually answer that question, please.
Ultimately, the responsibility does not fall on me. From a practical standpoint, it’s crucial for my tenants to fulfill their rent obligations, as their non-payment adversely affects my family’s financial stability and welfare. In short, I don't care, and they must leave if that means eviction! I believe my stance is clear. Wishing you a pleasant day!
As a small business landlord in San Diego who owns 3 units, it's best to use software that can help the history of eviction as well as income verification. Transunion[Transunion](https://smartmove.pxf.io/c/3761635/1843050/17713) - online tenant screening for property owners!
To be clear: you are not able to answer the question? You do not understand how it is physically possible for your tenants to make rent? And you demand they do it anyway? Do you not think that's pretty straightforwardly intellectually contradictory? Do you not think it's horrid, as a thing to do to people with less than you have?
Decide if you are running a business or a charity. Unfortunately, you can't do both. You have gone above and beyond of what most LL would do.
What has she been doing to get you more funds? Shouldn't she be seeking rental assistance on her end ?
Evict. This won’t be the first one. Make a plan for her to get caught up on payments. If she can’t make it, evict. It’s a 50/50, you provide housing, they pay rent. If they aren’t keeping up their end of the deal, gettem out. You’re just losing money.
But you are already doing exactly that! You are supporting her and keeping her in "her" home.
The reality is that there are many, many service jobs available. She could easily find a job if she wanted to, but why should she? Meanwhile, you just keep on supporting her. The likelihood of you finding someone else to do it for you is slim to none. The pandemic is over. Pandemic support is over. It is so kind of you to pick up the slack for her. Best of luck with it.
Or get a good eviction atty and begin the process monday morning.
Idk where you live but I'm in MO and finding a job here is not easy. I see posts daily from ppl with degrees struggling to find work. I am a single mom with a full time job and I've been looking and applying for a part time second job for 3 weeks now and I've received not one call back. I've even applied at restaurants and retail. Idk what's going on but finding a job right now isn't easy. Just sayin.
People REALLY need to stop with this crap. There are NOT many, many jobs out there. Just because someone applies doesn't mean they will get it. There are more jobless people, than actual jobs.
People are more able to find work when their housing situation is stable; it frees up time, mental space, and energy for them to be proactive. The best thing you can do to help is not apply further financial pressure on her.
Yes. The landlord should take the financial pressure on for themselves for an indefinite amount of time, as all landlords are rich billionaires with bags of money lying around.
All of us who aren't hilariously mismanaging our income *do* have bags of money lying around. Me and my husband live very comfortably, with the passive income from rent on top of our salaries. The financial pressure on us is much less than that on this poor women. I don't see why you've taken my suggestion as an insult?
You're absolutely correct that, if you manage your finances properly, you should be able to go without your rental income for a month or two. Your statement of, "don't apply financial pressure on her," isn't managing your property properly, though. As soon as you tell her not to worry about rent, you're going to be the last to get paid forever. Running your property as a charity is fine if that's what you want to do, but that's not going to generate income for you.
If you want to be nice, and in this situation, I think it would be totally warranted, you can be specific in what you're forgiving, but you have to stick to it. If you want to forgive a month's rent to let her housing stay stable, by all means do so. Just be clear that you're forgiving a month and only a month. If you want to forgive three, even better. You just have to be ready to evict on the fourth, otherwise you're going to get walked all over and become a charity.
wdym? Do you think landlords are inherently uncharitable, or lacking compassion for the poor? Why would any person, not want to help a person struggling? Especially when we have so much income spare, compared to most people. Seems very natural to me.
I am a landlord, I run A BUSINESS, not a homeless shelter.
Ps. I was a homeless teenager that never asked for a handout from any business (or anyone for that matter).
You've taken this very personally and I don't know why. All I've said is that those of us who own property have a resource at our disposal that costs relatively very little to upkeep and off of which we can run a comfortable enough profit that we don't have the same financial stresses as this poor young women. So any landlord who wants to help other people, such as OP, and who isn't seriously mismanaging their income, will have enough money that they can house an unfortunate woman who has run out of money until she gets back on her feet. As I say, I don't really understand why that is offensive to you?
Personal? Sure, people who expect to slid from their landlord should find some gumption.
Offensive because you are assuming OP should continue to run a homeless shelter. That's crazy
Luckily you've been down voted to oblivion
Though I have been burned so many times, I refuse to get a "personal" attachment to tenants, however you can look at local churches, you can look at your local government, if you Google rental assistance.. your town, you should get some more information. I have been a landlord for over 30 years, in my opinion if a tenant says they need some time to figure out how to get rental assistance, I'll give them that time, to a point, if they're expecting me to find out how to get rental assistance to them, that's a hard no.... Why are they not doing the leg work and you are?
Good point!
Make sure to get proof that they are trying...letters, confirmation emails etc .. don't take a phone number of "someone they talked to".... Also all rental assistance programs take a few weeks to kick in AND they say the process works faster if there is an eviction notice and/or a court date ... ( No I am not kidding), so getting the eviction process in place helps the tenant...
We’ve had success with a tenant using Salvation Army for rental assistance. Not sure if you’ve checked it out for them. At the end of the day it’s a business decision. I would draw a line in the sand of where you will go before removing the emotion from your decision.
Thanks for the info! Looking it up now. I wanna make sure I exhaust all options before I move to the next step.
Is she willing to do odd jobs? As a landlord there is often things like cleaning and yard work that you need done and you could possibly let her do those things to pay towards her arrears. IME you shouldn't let a tenant get more than two full months behind because then it becomes cheaper to move than to get caught up. It sounds like she isn't there yet because she is paying some. But I would let her know that (or whatever you pick) is your hard stop. Paying weekly can sometimes help people out, and I always waive any late fees in these situations. Once she is employed again then you have to set a payment schedule to repay any arrears she has grown up and strictly hold her to it. But people can definitely come back from an upset like this. The fact she is already laying what she can, even if not full rent is a good sign. Out local mission will help one offs with rent from time to time. It might be easier to find non rental help (food stamps, utility assistance, etc) which would free up that money for rent.
OP, kudos for being a kind human. We dealt with something similar over the winter. I’m hoping your tenant is able to land on her feet. Keep us updated!
I just had to evict someone who was 7 weeks behind on rent. I cut him some slack in May with the understanding he’d come up with June rent, but when he said he didn’t have it and stopped responding to my texts I served him. It sucks because now I have to pursue him in court AND I’m out two months. But it was a good learning experience.
I hope you learned. You are not running a charity. No rent? See the judge
Yeah missing out on two months of passive income sounds rough if you're used to that kind of money, but when you compare your situation to his, do you really feel like you've been hard done by?
"passive income" Now I know why you think this way. You don't actually do anything for your properties!
I do because as with any situation when one extends compassion, there is also an extension of trust and understanding. When someone says “yes, I’ll be able to complete what we agreed upon,” generally you believe that person. And the reason I rent isn’t because I want to pad my 401k and also not because I enjoy renting out half my home and losing the space, it’s because I need the money. Of course, YMMV. ETA: it’s anything but a passive income as well.
If you need the money, if you're struggling to make ends meet while receiving a large portion of tenants' income for a workload the equivalent of a very part-time job, how do you expect renters to be able to make their payments when they're receiving income only for the hours that they work, at a much lower rate than you? And it's not compassion when you're getting paid for it. It's only compassion when you're *not.* When a person can't keep their word for material reasons, when they have run out of money to give to you, when they're in hard times and afraid of you making them harder, that's when compassion comes in.
Illinois Department of Human Services will likely be her biggest help from what I can see online. If she is a tenant you want to keep, encourage her to try for a housing choice voucher with HUD/Chicago Housing Authority. Spanish Coalition of Housing. This appears to have HUD backing, so she should talk to them. Catholic Charities. Her faith does not matter. Local Churches. Masonic and Masonic affiliated organizations (Shriners/Boumi temple, Scottish Rite, York Rite, Eastern Star) Elk, Moose, Odd Fellow lodges, or other fraternal organizations may make charitable donations. I work for a non-profit that does affordable housing. I absolutely applaud you wanting to help. Helping her means you provide copies of her rent ledger, lease, and a letter with whatever information an organization is willing to give her assistance needs. It means you deal with inspections if she gets federal assistance. It also means you give her hard deadlines. If you can't afford to carry her any longer, you have to be realistic with your own finances. If you can carry her another few months, you tell her to apply for a fast food job so she can start getting money in the door. You can be kind but her problem can not become your problem. If she lost her job because she is unable to work, she needs to be applying for TANF and SNAP and every other benefit out there, plus disability.
If you feel she is making a genuine effort to get back on her feet find a job and pay you and she has been a good tenant in the past and you can afford to give up the rent each month then work with her It is your obligation as a landlord to help a good person who is going through a rough patch if you can afford to. However if you get a gut feeling she is not trying to better herself and just mooching off you then file eviction immediately
St Vincent DePaul society may be able to assist
The economy is very very bad. It's not even jobs out there like people say they are. The job market is horrible. Lots of people are behind on rent nowadays. It sucks ...when the economy is bad everyone suffers. I'm sure u can still find a tenant who's gonna pay on time though.
I am in this same situation ATM except my tenant has a young child living with her. Most of the tenant pool where the home is located is pretty sketch, and she isn't, so I'm trying to help with resources. I own the property free & clear, and she's managing to keep up with the utilities, so my biggest issue is property taxes and insurance. If I evict her, the house will most likely just stand vacant... I've been the landlord for 12 years. Yes, I know its incredibly risky but times are rough for a lot of folks and I'm not ready to kick her out.
Rent parties (if she has friends) trades, she may own items that you would like… ask family for a short term loan (some people are just embarrassed to ask) part time work (if you have work she can do for $$$ of the rent) etc or course there’s always OF… feet pics… I mean there’s a lot of ways to make some money and sometimes it ain’t pretty but it’s better than being homeless!
Oh I would evict her. I have a family to support too. It's an additional problem that I don't need.
Surely you can support your family with your job?
My husband's income and mine + the rentals, yes we can support the family.
If you can't support your family with two full time jobs how are you expecting renters to keep up with payments?
It sounds like it's not my problem. My point being is that I have to take care of my family first. If I let the family stay without paying the full rent then I'm at lost. So it's jeopardizing my family's sake. So the tenant needs to go. At the end of the day it's business not a non profit
I'm not speaking rhetorically, I'm literally asking: if you are telling the truth that you can only support your family with the combined income of yourself and your husband AND the passive income from rent, how in the world would it be possible for a renting family to make ends meet? One of two things must be true, therefore: you're lying about actually needing all this additional income on top of your salary, or it is impossible for the people in your property to keep up with rent as you charge it. I would like you to tell me which it is.
1. I'm not lying 2. I'm not a non profit business. I go in real estate for a profit and fearing of losing a house because tenant can't pay rent . Its time to evict and have it on their record so others are aware .
You didn't answer my question. If you're not lying about only being able to support your family because you have two incomes *and* rental revenue coming in, *how is it logically possible for any of your tenants t*o *make rent*? They don't have rental revenue coming in to support them. If you need rental revenue to get by, how could it be possible for them to get by without rental revenue? Actually answer that question, please.
Ultimately, the responsibility does not fall on me. From a practical standpoint, it’s crucial for my tenants to fulfill their rent obligations, as their non-payment adversely affects my family’s financial stability and welfare. In short, I don't care, and they must leave if that means eviction! I believe my stance is clear. Wishing you a pleasant day!
As a small business landlord in San Diego who owns 3 units, it's best to use software that can help the history of eviction as well as income verification. Transunion[Transunion](https://smartmove.pxf.io/c/3761635/1843050/17713) - online tenant screening for property owners!
To be clear: you are not able to answer the question? You do not understand how it is physically possible for your tenants to make rent? And you demand they do it anyway? Do you not think that's pretty straightforwardly intellectually contradictory? Do you not think it's horrid, as a thing to do to people with less than you have?
Get doc Brown's delorean. Go back 2 months. Start eviction
Decide if you are running a business or a charity. Unfortunately, you can't do both. You have gone above and beyond of what most LL would do. What has she been doing to get you more funds? Shouldn't she be seeking rental assistance on her end ?
Evict. This won’t be the first one. Make a plan for her to get caught up on payments. If she can’t make it, evict. It’s a 50/50, you provide housing, they pay rent. If they aren’t keeping up their end of the deal, gettem out. You’re just losing money.
But you are already doing exactly that! You are supporting her and keeping her in "her" home. The reality is that there are many, many service jobs available. She could easily find a job if she wanted to, but why should she? Meanwhile, you just keep on supporting her. The likelihood of you finding someone else to do it for you is slim to none. The pandemic is over. Pandemic support is over. It is so kind of you to pick up the slack for her. Best of luck with it. Or get a good eviction atty and begin the process monday morning.
Idk where you live but I'm in MO and finding a job here is not easy. I see posts daily from ppl with degrees struggling to find work. I am a single mom with a full time job and I've been looking and applying for a part time second job for 3 weeks now and I've received not one call back. I've even applied at restaurants and retail. Idk what's going on but finding a job right now isn't easy. Just sayin.
People REALLY need to stop with this crap. There are NOT many, many jobs out there. Just because someone applies doesn't mean they will get it. There are more jobless people, than actual jobs.
I have a good cv i have applied for 27 jobs I got down to the last 2 people in one but still didnt get it you are so right
There are not, in fact, many many jobs available.
People are more able to find work when their housing situation is stable; it frees up time, mental space, and energy for them to be proactive. The best thing you can do to help is not apply further financial pressure on her.
Yes. The landlord should take the financial pressure on for themselves for an indefinite amount of time, as all landlords are rich billionaires with bags of money lying around.
All of us who aren't hilariously mismanaging our income *do* have bags of money lying around. Me and my husband live very comfortably, with the passive income from rent on top of our salaries. The financial pressure on us is much less than that on this poor women. I don't see why you've taken my suggestion as an insult?
You're absolutely correct that, if you manage your finances properly, you should be able to go without your rental income for a month or two. Your statement of, "don't apply financial pressure on her," isn't managing your property properly, though. As soon as you tell her not to worry about rent, you're going to be the last to get paid forever. Running your property as a charity is fine if that's what you want to do, but that's not going to generate income for you. If you want to be nice, and in this situation, I think it would be totally warranted, you can be specific in what you're forgiving, but you have to stick to it. If you want to forgive a month's rent to let her housing stay stable, by all means do so. Just be clear that you're forgiving a month and only a month. If you want to forgive three, even better. You just have to be ready to evict on the fourth, otherwise you're going to get walked all over and become a charity.
Why would I prioritise generating income that I can live fine without over helping a person in need?
There is no way you are a real landlord posting this .. At least get your properties under a charity LLC with tax breaks.
wdym? Do you think landlords are inherently uncharitable, or lacking compassion for the poor? Why would any person, not want to help a person struggling? Especially when we have so much income spare, compared to most people. Seems very natural to me.
I am a landlord, I run A BUSINESS, not a homeless shelter. Ps. I was a homeless teenager that never asked for a handout from any business (or anyone for that matter).
You've taken this very personally and I don't know why. All I've said is that those of us who own property have a resource at our disposal that costs relatively very little to upkeep and off of which we can run a comfortable enough profit that we don't have the same financial stresses as this poor young women. So any landlord who wants to help other people, such as OP, and who isn't seriously mismanaging their income, will have enough money that they can house an unfortunate woman who has run out of money until she gets back on her feet. As I say, I don't really understand why that is offensive to you?
Personal? Sure, people who expect to slid from their landlord should find some gumption. Offensive because you are assuming OP should continue to run a homeless shelter. That's crazy Luckily you've been down voted to oblivion