Re: LPA Lease Late Fee Clause - Landlord Forum thread 357796

Re: LPA Lease Late Fee Clause by Anonymous on June 19, 2018 @15:43

There does not appear to be any statutes regulating late fees for Nevada (at least from what I could find).

We don't do late fees. We do Prompt Payment Discounts. The lease reflects the full price of the rental, but if the rent for the month is paid on time, we deduct $25.00 from the rent. The distinction between 'late fees' and 'discount' is a minor one, but it means that everything is considered to be rent. We generally forgive the first offense, but stick to our guns on the ones that happen after.

As far as enforcing it, check to see if you can charge interest on unpaid amounts. We charge 18% annually. I don't know if Nevada allows for it. Other than sending a statement asking tenants to pay their balance, the only other option you have is to send then a pay or vacate notice. It may sound heavy handed, but there really are very few choices...but keep in mind that if you send a notice to pay or vacate, you should be prepared to start the eviction or the notice will not have any meaning the next time.

As far as how much can you charge, 5% of the monthly rent is considered a reasonable late fee. You can try to charge whatever amount you want, but if you have to go to court, unreasonable amounts could be tossed out by the judge. If you really want the late fee to have impact, put it at $50.00.

Of course, whatever you decide to do needs to be written into a lease.

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