According to census data, nearly 60% of Houston households are renter-occupied.
If you're a property owner in Houston, this is great news. Having a large pool of renters to choose from is important for your bottom line. Once you secure a great tenant, however, you need to keep them happy.
There are numerous ways to do this. First, you need to take care of preventative maintenance so that the property is comfortable and safe. The other thing you should do is think about the best way to collect rent so that the process is simple and streamlined.
Today, we'll discuss a few rent collection methods so you can maximize your rental income and make property management easy. Keep reading and consider each of these rent payment methods.
Automated Rent Collection
The preferred rent collection method for most landlords is direct deposit, as it provides reliability and efficient rent tracking. Younger tenants will favor this contactless method of paying rent because they don't have to think about it, the money just comes out of their account.
If you get property management advice, a tenant portal is always going to be the most recommended platform. A tenant portal gives you one place to receive rent payments and converse with your tenants about their needs.
Not all tenants will prefer this method, even if it seems like the most convenient. It's important to offer other ways to pay rent, but encourage your tenants to choose direct deposit.
Payment Apps
The other popular electronic payment method is to have your tenants send you money each month with the payment app of your choosing. There are dozens of payment apps available these days, including PayPal, Zelle, and Venmo.
All of these apps are free to use and let you send as many transactions back and forth as you want. The only issue with them is that they can take a few days for a payment to go through, unlike with direct deposit payments. It also requires your tenant to remember to pay you on the first of each month.
Cash or Cheque
Lastly, you can always collect rent payments the old-fashioned way. Cash and post-dated cheques are still the preferred rent payment method for older tenants who don't feel comfortable sending money over the Internet.
When collecting rent in this manner, the easiest thing to do is collect a year's worth of post-dated cheques. You won't have to chase any tenants down for rent, you just need to cash the cheque at the start of a new month.
If you choose to collect cash, you can have your tenant put it in a drop box or you can show up in person to do it yourself. This is a safe and reliable way to ensure you get your money.
Which Is the Best Way to Collect Rent?
The best way to collect rent is the one that satisfies your and your tenants' needs. These are a few landlord tips to help you figure out rent collection. If you need more assistance with this or any other aspect of managing your rental, hiring Terra Residential Services is the answer.
We're Houston's top property management company, having helped countless landlords with their duties since 1990. Contact us today to learn how we can help you.
