3 tips for landlords with tenants who are struggling to pay rent, from a proptech exec

• Lucas Hall is the head of industry relations at property management software firm Cozy and the founder of Cozy's Landlordology, which provides tools and resources for landlords, property owners, and renters.
• He made a guest appearance on the "BiggerPockets" podcast and shared three ways landlords can still earn rent from their tenants during this economic downturn.
• His tips include offering them more time to pay, coming up with a weekly payment plan, and giving them a temporary credit.
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More than 10% of Americans have filed for unemployment over the past three weeks as the coronavirus pandemic has brought industries across the country to a halt.

As a result, around a third of renters didn't pay their April rent, according to data from the National Multifamily Housing Council and a group of companies that collect data about real estate.

That staggering percentage follows the passing of the $2 trillion federal coronavirus stimulus, which failed to provide relief for tenants.

On a recent episode of the"BiggerPockets" podcast, co-hosted by David Greene and Brandon Turner, real-estate leaders shared their tips on how to survive, and even thrive, during an economic downturn. And they touched on the many landlords suddenly without the cash flow needed to run their properties.

"Despite what the general population thinks, most landlords are not rich, greedy, multinational corporations with billions sitting in the bank," Turner, explained in a YouTube video. "Most landlords are people, just like you and me."

Lucas Hall, the head of industry relations for property management software company Cozy, made a guest appearance on the podcast to give some advice to landlords who have tenants that are unable to make their rent payments. Hall is also the founder of Cozy's Landlordology, which provides resources for landlords, property managers, and tenants, made three recommendations.

1. Give tenants time

"If you're like me, you probably have tenants from all walks of life, some of which are in the hospitality and service industry," Hall said on the podcast. "Some things you can do to help them help you would be to, one, give them a little more time to pay rent. Most mortgages aren't officially late until the 15 of the month, maybe you could give them the full 15 days. They would certainly appreciate it, and it would increase your chances of actually getting paid."

2. Propose weekly payments

Another alternative, Hall explained, is to offer tenants weekly payments as opposed to monthly payments. In some cases, unemployment checks are administered weekly. Smaller, more digestible chunks might be easier to pay than a large amount at the end of the month, he said.

"If you're a tenant and your rent is $1,4000 a month and you know that you can't pay $1,400, that doesn't mean you couldn't pay $900 a month," added Greene, the podcast's co-host. But most tenants are not going to think 'well, I'll pay $900. If I can't pay it, I can't pay all of it' and they don't send you anything. But from the landlord's perspective, you might be happy to get $900 right now, and you can figure out the $500 later."

3. Temporarily credit tenants

Finally, Hall suggested to landlords that they give tenants a temporary credit. "For example, for the next two months you can say 'hey, you only have to pay half the rent and we'll make it up later," he said. "Worst-case scenario, you take it out of their security deposit at the end of the lease."

It is, of course important, to put these arrangements in writing, Hall added.

Podcast co-host Turner explained that he's having his tenants fill out a form that shows proof of financial hardship to weed out tenants who can pay rent but are opting not to.

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