How to collect uncollected rent monies is part of the process for Property Management in Atlanta. The trick is to not let the condition get distressing. The first month a Atlanta tenant falls behind in the rent, you should take appropriate action. While it's pivotal to respond swiftly, Property Management Atlanta training shows you want to avoid face-to-face contact since it could lead to confrontation. The better option is to send a letter to the tenant, and because it's not one of the legal forms in your library, it doesn't have to be sent certified mail. Any letter that has the correct address and postage is considered received once it is mailed. The letter should inform the leasor to call you so that the situation can be overcome. If the tenant offers you a incomplete remittance, Property Management Atlanta training indicates that you do not refuse it. However, it is vital that you give the tenant a receipt that clearly shows that what you received is only a partial payment, and that you still have the legal right to collect the rest of the unpaid rent. You may also feel that effective Property Management Atlanta techniques require you to investigate how serious your tenant's financial crisis is. That means checking to see if they're still employed, and how much other debt they're carrying. Property Management Atlanta training says that if your original rental agreement doesn't prevent you from calling the employer listed, you can do so to see your tenant is still working for the company. Also, as long as you maintain a debtor-creditor relationship with your tenant, the Fair Credit Reporting Act allows you can to get a copy of the tenant's credit report. Legal forms like your rental application most often have a release allowing this. Although you can get this information, Property Management Atlanta training says it really won't do you much good. Even if the tenant isn't gainfully employed and is carrying a major debt, if they provide the rent they can't be evicted. The only value that information might have in terms of Property Management Atlanta is if you use it to decide how much leeway you are prepared to give them. The real bad situations start when you've put off collecting back rent and the tenant is still in the apartment. Your only option is to start an eviction. You begin by forwarding your tenant a Notice To Quit, which IS one of the legal forms in your library you have to use specifically. The letter tells your tenant how much time they have to pay the back rent, typically 3 to 14 days according to state law. If the tenant pays, they can stay, but if they don't, they must depart. People employed by Property Management Atlanta firms aren't considered debt collectors under the FDCPA either because the rental payments aren't owed to another individual or entity. But if at any time during the collection process the Property Management Atlanta/property manager mentions any name other than their own, that means that a third person is collecting the debt, and the Property Management Atlanta/property manager becomes a debt collector subject to the FDCPA.