Late Charge Blues
October 16th, 2007 by AptBldgTraderBy Kevin Postema,
October 14, 2007
Question:
I live in Los Angeles, and I always have paid my rent on time. I just got a notice from my landlord that he had sent me a late rent notification last March for paying that month’s rent late. The notice said that I would be charged a late fee amounting to 5% of the March rent. He charged me the fee even though I don’t believe the rent was late. For the record, I have proof that my rent check cleared the bank on March 2.
I would like to know what a landlord is allowed to charge a tenant in late fees for a late rent check. Can he charge 5%? Is that 5% per day, which would be 60% of the rent if one was a month late in paying the rent?
Is there no grace period required by law for paying the rent a day or two late?
Answer:
A check cashed on the second is not necessarily received on the first. Your rent may have been received and cashed on the second. A landlord can charge a 5% late fee for a late rent payment if it is written into the lease.
Although the law does not specify precisely how much landlords can charge for late fees, 5% per day would be excessive. In our current economy, up to 6% per month is allowed by most courts. In the late ’70s, when we had double-digit inflation, most courts allowed late fees of up to 10%. Generally, late fees have to bear some rational relationship to the costs one incurs as a result of them.
There is nothing in the law requiring a grace period for late rent payments. They are strictly at the discretion of the owner. Many renters are confused about this because many landlords voluntarily give their tenants grace periods, even writing them into their leases or rental agreements.
Kevin Postema is the editor of Apartment Age magazine, a publication of the Apartment Assn. of Greater Los Angeles, an apartment owners’ service group. Send letters to aptlifeaagla@aol.com