SERVICE / SUPPLIER
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Debt Collection Best Practices for Community Owners by Ryan Fishman
A
s the owner or operator of a manufactured housing community, you’ve probably dealt with your share of delinquent payments. At first, a resident is just late – maybe a couple of days. Eventually, you will experience the rent payment never comes. There’s no response to calls or knocks on the door, so you’re forced to pursue an eviction. Once you have possession of the home or site, you’re stuck carrying a loss you might never recoup.
This process forces you to perform a juggling act of financial, legal, and ethical considerations. Worst of all, you’re often expected to go through this process alone.
Don’t Lose Hope With a set of standard operating procedures for your community, you can develop an effective collections process to mitigate these losses. By being proactive, you’ll avoid the heartaches and headaches often associated with post-eviction loss-
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es, boost your cash flow, and give your community a competitive business advantage.
Setting the Record Straight We like to tell our clients the place to start is the start. That means comprehensive and standard credit screening protocols for prospective residents. It’s critical this process be structured and tightly maintained – it will help avoid more delinquent or defaulting residents down the road and improve your ability to collect
