Hi tenants and potential tenants. I've been doing checks on parcels lately for rent timeliness and I thought I would share my philosophy with you. In an ideal situation, everyone would pay their rent on time or at least would notify me well in advance that they had a problem paying the rent or were leaving the parcel. Most tenants are very good about paying on time or notifying me that they are leaving. Occasionally someone has a problem paying the rent and asks for some leniency, which I'm happy to grant in a reasonable fashion. When tenants work with me this way, I can actually pay Linden Lab their $6,000 USD plus per month without having to borrow money on my credit card temporarily. Linden Lab treats me like an adult: they give me no advance warning that they are charging me, because they told me upfront that every 30 days they will be charging me $295 USD per month per sim. I know when the first tier date is, because they tell me upfront. It's my responsibility to be aware of my tier payment dates and to have enough money available to pay the tier. Of course, I always do, because I have a responsibility to tenants to not have the sim reclaimed for lack of payment.
Similarly, some tenants are not so good with being timely with rent. This puts me at a disadvantage with Linden Lab, because they expect that $295 USD every month regardless. I don't think it's fair to me as a small business person to have to always borrow money on my credit card to pay Linden Lab. If business was truly bad, then yes, that's my tough luck. However, if a sim is 95% rented out or 100% rented out, there is no reason for me to do this. Therefore, when I do a check on a parcel and see that a tenant is 9 days late or 14 days late and has said nothing whatsoever to me, I am not happy whatsoever. I tell everyone upfront in the Standard Land Covenants that I do not issue reminders and I explain why in the FAQS. Everyone knows they need to pay on time somehow. To me, being so late on rent tells me one of several things: 1- I'm leaving the parcel and did not tell you; 2- I am keeping the parcel but expect you to remind me like a child; 3- I expect you to give me free land and pay Linden Lab to keep the sim; or 4- I do not care about your financial well-being. None of these messages makes me happy. Therefore, I'm very inclined to reclaim the parcel. Per the Land Covenants, I do not give any notice that I'm reclaiming parcels because of non-payment of rent.
The underlying message here is this: Don't be surprised if your parcel is reclaimed if you do not communicate with me. We are all adults I hope, and I treat everyone like an adult. You expect me to live up to my Land Covenants and Sales Covenants, and you should. I expect tenants to live up to their responsibilities. When everyone does what they are supposed to in this rental situation, everyone is happy. Let's do that. Thanks for reading :)
Steve Mahfouz
Similarly, some tenants are not so good with being timely with rent. This puts me at a disadvantage with Linden Lab, because they expect that $295 USD every month regardless. I don't think it's fair to me as a small business person to have to always borrow money on my credit card to pay Linden Lab. If business was truly bad, then yes, that's my tough luck. However, if a sim is 95% rented out or 100% rented out, there is no reason for me to do this. Therefore, when I do a check on a parcel and see that a tenant is 9 days late or 14 days late and has said nothing whatsoever to me, I am not happy whatsoever. I tell everyone upfront in the Standard Land Covenants that I do not issue reminders and I explain why in the FAQS. Everyone knows they need to pay on time somehow. To me, being so late on rent tells me one of several things: 1- I'm leaving the parcel and did not tell you; 2- I am keeping the parcel but expect you to remind me like a child; 3- I expect you to give me free land and pay Linden Lab to keep the sim; or 4- I do not care about your financial well-being. None of these messages makes me happy. Therefore, I'm very inclined to reclaim the parcel. Per the Land Covenants, I do not give any notice that I'm reclaiming parcels because of non-payment of rent.
The underlying message here is this: Don't be surprised if your parcel is reclaimed if you do not communicate with me. We are all adults I hope, and I treat everyone like an adult. You expect me to live up to my Land Covenants and Sales Covenants, and you should. I expect tenants to live up to their responsibilities. When everyone does what they are supposed to in this rental situation, everyone is happy. Let's do that. Thanks for reading :)
Steve Mahfouz
