Hold rental property - Landlord Forum thread 351678

Hold rental property by Anonymous (CT) on April 15, 2017 @15:05

I have had my property listed for one week now. This is my first time renting the property. The area that I live in is near the coast and my property has a water view. I had one tenant reach out and ask if I could rent the property beginning June 1. I haven't had a telephone conversation with this tenant yet. She has only communicated via email. Can anyone share there policies for holding rental property?

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Re: Hold rental property by LL (CA) on April 15, 2017 @15:54	[ Reply ]

I don't like holding rentals for so long. If someone is a really good candidate for the rental though, I ask one month holding fee which is non-refundable. If they go through with the lease and move in, I convert the holding fee in to the security deposit.

Re: Hold rental property by Katiekate (New York) on April 15, 2017 @15:57	[ Reply ]

I will hold a property provided I have a "reservation fee". That must be paid in cash. It is equal to one month rent. Prospect signs an agreement to rent...this being the reservation fee...and is NIT refundable if they do not move in on time. I make it clear the move is date is a "drop dead date". Meaning..if they do not move in on that day..the place will be rented to someone else, and they loose the fee completely. I have never had anyone fail to move in...probably because they don't want their money going to waste. I have never had anyone actually show up to move in when I didn't have that large sum of money I was holding on to. Of course...when they move in, I require first month, last month in cash before they get the keys...and before the lease is signed. The "reservation fee" will be rolled over into the security deposit after they move in. Be careful. Never call it a deposit. Put it all in writing..and use those words...FEE. Deposits are always refundable...don't use those words.

Re: Hold rental property by Anonymous on April 16, 2017 @00:17	[ Reply ]

You don't know at this point if this person is actually qualified or not. Until you get all the qualifying data such as credit score, income, job, ect, and/or a fully filled out application, don't waste your time on the holding process. Get them fully qualified first, then worry about getting a non-refundable holding fee. Don't spend time on unqualified tenants; get them qualified or discard them. Personally I don't like holding a place for a month and a half. Too many things can happen in that time. I limit my SFH to a max of one month or less.

Re: Hold rental property by Anonymous on April 16, 2017 @13:51	[ Reply ]

Until you have qualified this person to rent your property, I wouldn't discuss anything. You could be wasting your time on somneone. Tell them they have to be qualified FIRST and then you'll see about other options.