Finding the right tenant for a rental property is not always easy. The current economic recession is biting hard and with unemployment at an all-time high and wages failing to keep in line with the cost of living, rent arrears are becoming an increasing problem for many UK landlords.
According to recent figures, more than 100,000 tenants were at least two months behind on their rent payments between April and June of this year. As a result, there has been a corresponding rise in the number of landlords taking court action in order to evict non-paying tenants in the last three months.
How can landlords try and avoid such problems?
The best way to avoid having to take your tenants to court for non-payment of rent is to choose the right tenant in the first place, and although there are always going to be some circumstances where a tenants is struggling to pay the rent because he unexpectedly lost his job, or similar, it makes sense to scrutinise references even more closely in these difficult times.
But if your tenants do appear to be struggling with rent payments, tackle the issue sooner rather than later. Talk to them and find out what the underlying reason is, and if they are otherwise good, reliable tenants, consider reducing the rent for a short period of time until they get back on their feet. Just remember to put anything you agree on in writing in case there is a dispute at a later date. However, if you can’t resolve the situation, make a move to have the tenant evicted before you lose too much money.
