If you’re currently dealing with a tenant who has failed to pay their rent, you may be stressing over the best time to send out a “Notice to Quit”—the notice that informs your tenants that they have 30 days to vacate the property, because you are evicting them with cause. Perhaps you have questions about when you should send this notice, or even when you’re legally allowed to send it.
This is a problem we see often with our clients. Many landlords who call for eviction advice have tenants who are at least three months behind with rent. Even immediately sending a notice out can still take another 4-8 weeks for tenant eviction. For many landlords, that means going months and months without a rent payment. That’s not feasible for most landlords, so it’s important to make a habit out of sending notices immediately after non-payment.
Establish a Habit of Sending Out a “Notice to Quit”
One of the best ways you can protect yourself from going months without a rent payment is by making sure that you send the notice to quit the day after the grace period ends. If you don’t have the rent payment, simply print and mail off a copy of your notice immediately.
To some landlords, this may seem harsh. If you are concerned about this, remember that you do not have to enforce a notice after you’ve sent it. You can still choose to allow the tenant to stay in your rental unit if you desire. Now, however, that tenant knows that you mean business when it comes to late payments. Also, talking with you directly instead of missing the payment without telling you is going to be necessary. In this way, sending out a notice to quit immediately is still a good strategy even if you are uncomfortable with evicting someone over a single missed rent.
If you practice this habit, you can reduce the time you spend with a tenant who won’t pay rent. You can have them evicted as soon as possible so that someone new can move into the unit and start paying rent.
What’s the Difference between a “Notice to Quit” and an Eviction?
A “Notice to Quit” is a document that warns tenants that they have 30 days to vacate a property. This notice is legally-required In some landlord-tenant relationships. Eviction is the legal process of removing tenants who are violating their leases but refusing to vacate your property. The notice is usually the first step in an eviction.
For More Information about Landlord Advice…
Please let us know if you have any more questions about how to manage tenants who refuse to pay their rent. We can help you draft any notices you need.