Information For Renters At Property Managed By Nesbitt Realty
You should choose the method and means that best suits your lifestyle. Here are the ways that some of our tenants pay rent:
- Drop off payment – Payment can be made in person at our office. The main door to our office closes at around 7 pm. The door to our office has a slot through which you may deposit your rent after normal business hours.
- Mail a check – You can mail a check to our office. Mail is sometimes slow to deliver. If the post office delivers your check after 5pm on the 5th, you will incur a late-fee. If you are mailing a check, it's a good idea to try to mail well before the 1st of the month.
- Automated Payment – Most banks will allow you to set up an automated payment through their system. You won't need our account number to set this up, but you will need to select us as a vendor. In most systems we are registered as a vendor under the name Nesbitt Realty and/or the name Condo Alexandria. Either names work for rent payment.
- Pre-authorized Checks – Some of our tenants simply sign 12 rent checks, each dated for the first of the month, and leave those at our office at the beginning of the lease.
It is the tenant's responsibility to deliver rent to Nesbitt Realty. It is not the landlord's responsibility to choose the method of delivery. You have to pay your rent on time without Nesbitt Realty having to remind you.
Rent is due on the first day of the month. Rent received after the first of the month is late. After the first day of the month, your lease allows for a grace period because sometimes unexpected events can cause the best laid plans to go wrong. Understand that if you pay during the grace period, there is no fee charged, but your rent is still late.
Nearly every tenant we've ever managed has taken advantage of the grace period at some point during their tenancy, but it's important to strive to pay on or before the first. Here's why: when you take up your next residence landlord look more favorably upon tenants who pay their rent on time.
More importantly, if you one day decide to buy a home, the lender will look at when your rent check was deposited – not the date you write on the memo. Rents that are deposited in a timely manner ensure the best rates for you as a borrower because they demonstrate to the lender that your mortgage will be paid in a timely manner.
Lastly, when it comes time to renew your lease and to decide on a rent increase, most landlords look more favorably upon a tenant who has paid rent on time.
The Grace Period ends at 5 pm on the day described in your lease. Any checks or payments received after 5 pm are recorded the next day and will suffer a late fee.
Late Fees
If your lease describes any late fees we must charge you these late fees exactly as described in your lease. Because of Fair Housing Laws, we have no discretion in this and many other matters. If Nesbitt Realty makes an exception for one tenant we must make exceptions for all tenants. The best way to avoid a late fee is to pay on time.
Pre-authorized Checks
Some tenants have difficulty dropping off checks or mailing checks that will arrive at the first of the month. If you expect you will have any difficulty delivering by the first, please talk to us about how we can arrange for pre-authorized checks.
Certified Funds
Your lease usually requires that tenants make payments in certified funds, cash or money order. This requirement is waived for all tenants until and unless a check bounces. If your rental check bounces, in addition to paying any late fees and returned check fees, all future rents must be made with certified funds.
