PayPal and carbon copies
Phil,
I wasn’t suggesting that PayPal is the answer to scoundrels who prowl the internet – you can lodge a complaint with PayPal. Link:
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=p/gen/ua/policy_buyer_complaint-outside
To file a Buyer Claim link:
https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/w...=1400&unique_id=70999&source_page=_home&flow=
When the landlord sends a PayPal invoice to the renter on that eMail from PayPal there is a link to the “Member Information Box” on the “Send Money Confirmation page” which the buyer can click for more information about the buyer. This might help calm payment jitters that the renter has.
The alternative to PayPal is the US Mail and lost checks. I’ve gone thru this a few times before I ONLY accept PayPal (Unless the renter has an outstanding reason not to use it).
Here’s an example of just how bad things can get:
I once had a renter rent a week 52 at Marriott’s MountainSide 5 years ago. The rent was $3,500 with a $350 security deposit for a total of $3,850. I asked the renter to send ONLY a cashiers check to me by mail. Well 2 weeks go by and I sent the renter an eMail wanting to know where the rent check was. He said he sent me the check AND the carbon-copy of the check via first class mail.
So now he wants his reservation and I have no money and the cheek is “in the mail”. A week went by with no letter. The renter had gotten a check from his bank and they wanted him to put up a security bond for $3,850 that would cost several hundred dollars I believe. He was ticked – I was ticked and we went around and around for weeks.
Finally, one day the letter shows up – he had used MS for Missouri on my address (MO is Missouri) and not used a zip code. The letter went to Mississippi for a month before they got it to me.
So use PayPal or if by Cashier’s Check use US Priority Mail with a tracking number.
And don’t send the carbon copy of the Cashier’s Check to the landlord!