Blog | Velo Homes

How (and why!) you should pro-rate rent

Written by Matt Marcus | Mar 10, 2023 8:30:00 PM

As a landlord, pro-rating rent is an essential aspect of maintaining positive relationships with your tenants. Pro-rating rent means charging your tenant a reduced amount of rent for a partial month or billing period. Here's why and how you should pro-rate rent for your tenant:

  1. Fairness: Pro-rating rent ensures that your tenants only pay for the time they actually occupy the rental unit. It is the fairest way to charge rent, especially when a tenant moves in or out of the unit mid-month.

  2. Building Goodwill: By pro-rating rent, you are showing your tenants that you are willing to be flexible and understanding. This can go a long way in building a positive relationship with your tenants and encouraging them to renew their lease when the time comes.

  3. Easy Calculation: Pro-rating rent is a straightforward process. Divide the monthly rent by the number of days in the month, and then multiply that amount by the number of days the tenant will be occupying the unit.

  4. Tenant Satisfaction: Pro-rating rent can help ensure tenant satisfaction. If a tenant feels they are being charged fairly and accurately, they are more likely to feel satisfied with their rental experience.

Pro-rating rent is an essential aspect of being a landlord. It ensures fairness, builds goodwill, makes for easy calculation, and improves tenant satisfaction. By pro-rating rent, you can maintain positive relationships with your tenants, which can lead to long-term rental agreements, increased profitability, and fewer headaches for you as a landlord.