Ensure Tenants Pay Rent Over Christmas & New Year

Wow November is almost gone and the silly season is just about to begin!

At this time of the year everyone is getting busy, and often the wallet is getting stretched a little bit further, so it is very important that tenants understand that just because it is the holiday season, that does not mean they can have a wee ‘break’ from paying the rent!

There are many things that need to be put into place to ensure tenants are aware that payments still need to be paid on the due date, despite public holidays, plus of course we have to be on the ball at all times to make sure that as soon as the banks are open again, that the rent has come into our accounts.

Although the doors of our office are closed between Christmas and New Year – we are still beavering away in the background, downloading banking and checking for missed payments so that we can ensure that our landlords payments are not going to fall short come the beginning of January.

It is important that you keep on top of the rents if you are heading away on holiday. I recommend putting a reminder on your phone to check when the rent should be showing in your bank account (excluding public holidays), so that if it is not there you can speak to the tenant immediately and get it sorted. Because you have already given them the heads up about your expectations, there should be no surprises… but – so important to keep on top of this.

If you are lucky enough to be heading overseas for Christmas – you need to ensure your tenants have someone else to call in New Zealand while you are away should the need arise. (Did you know it is illegal to be out of the country for more than 21 consecutive days without the tenants having a representative to contact??)

Of course another thing to think about is gifts for your tenants at Christmas – it is a bit of a warm fuzzy, but something I like to do for my own tenants. The smile on their faces is so worth it when I just pop around to drop off a card and a wee something to wish them a Merry Xmas, and say thanks for being great tenants! I also think that valuing your tenants (the good ones of course!) helps to keep them as good tenants, a little bit of mutual respect goes a long way in my opinion.

Take care until next month