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Bill pay as some others mentioned as most banks if you have a good record with the bank, they will pay the late fees if the check was mailed on time.
If you have a good record of paying the rent than it is very sad the apartment complex will not give you a break. We give people one break regardless of the story but that's it!
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
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Landlords do not lose rent checks.
I don't take rent checks, though in some states you can't restrict payment type.
All my tenants have accounts at my bank and use either online transfer or go to the teller. It has worked well. I've never had a lost payment and it removes that whole excuse.
For a tenant the only way is to have a receipt.
Otherwise you have to write a new check and put a stop payment on the old one.
listen, a DIRTY TRICK they can play on you also if they do not have a reason to evict you is to give you a reciept for rent, however NOT cash it... they have up to 6 months. what they do is hold it.. then thinking you might not have enough in account and think it went through in time, months later Boom! they cash them all giving you most likely lots of service charges to eat up your money even if it is accounted for still... they start bouncing, then give you 5 days to pay them all at one time. then if you can not they evict you!............. do open a seperate bank account and pay your rent that way always. you can also just open a SAVINGS account and as long as you do not write you rent check off that account, most banks will give you checks or charge just $2-3 bucks to print up a page of checks for you on that account... and only pay rent off that one account. By doing it this way, THIS will never happen to you.
If they say they have lost your check, you still HAVE to pay your rent... the receipt you have proves you paid it and you did not pay it late...... Secondly, get a statement from bank how much it cost to void your check. Make apt people give you a written statement they lost the check, not verbal.... Make them pay the cancel check charge or maybe bank will void without a charge....... Then once you have voided it, write them a replacement check and put on the check that it is a replacement check giving to them on what date. Along with replacement check, give them a letter that they need to find that check and return it to you once found.
Hand your check directly to whoever is behind the desk and ask for a written receipt that has the date, amount, check number and the name of the person who accepted the check.
I recently had this happen to me, where the management company (all licensed Realtors) lost my check. And yes, how do you prove you put the check in their drop box? well, you can't.
However, if this is the system they have set up, they also have a fiduciary responsibility to be cautious. When they contacted me, rather snakily asking where the check was, I informed them I would go the next day with a replacement.
When I IN PERSON gave them the new check, I told them I was placing a stop payment on the lost check, and deducting the cost from my next months rent payment for their carelessness.
I might have signed a lease with the landlord, but they are doing a poor job representing him.
There are several ways to pay your rent with a direct payment from your bank to theirs. I suggest that you do that. There will be bank records that show the transaction and there are several companies that provide that service for a very low charge.
I do not recommend the service where your bank mails them a check. Only do the direct transfer version.
If you want to pay by check, walk the check into the office and get a receipt.
If you do a registered mail or have a money order receipt, that does not prove you paid the rent. It only proves you mailed something (or nothing); it does not prove a check was in the mail. The same with a money order receipt. It shows you bought a money order. It does not prove that you handed the money order to your landlord.
Get a receipt or else arrange direct deposit.
A bit off topic, but they can still lose your check if you have a receipt for it and you will still have to put a stop payment on your check and issue another check. But it does stop them from charging a late fee.
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I put culpability back on management company
