Notes

Security Deposit and Applications - Should You Accept Cash, Check or Money Order?
If a landlord is looking to rent their investment property, they need to always charge a software fee and a security deposit. The application fee is collected to pay the cost of conducting a tenant criminal background check and a credit check. The security deposit is to hide the expense of any damages that this tenant does to the home. The biggest question that landlords ask is whether or not they ought to accept cash, check or money order for your application fee and the security deposit.
Cash
There is rarely anything wrong with accepting cash for the application fee. There is no trouble with cash not being accepted anywhere. This money is non-refundable anyway. Since it is non-refundable then you definitely need not allow them to have a receipt for the application fee. It is probably not a bad idea to present the possible tenant a receipt anyway to exhibit that you just received the money for your application fee.
I would also recommend that you simply get the security deposit in cash also. Since this money is potentially refundable to the tenant when they leave, I recommend that you provide tenant a receipt if you collect the security deposit. The best receipt books would be the pre printed forms which you can get at stores like Office Depot. These receipt books have duplicates which permit you to present the tenant the top copy so you copy with the receipt stays inside your receipt book.
Money Order
Money orders are universally acceptable. There is a slight chance that your particular tenant might make available to you a fake money order. You need to be mindful of this should you accept money orders for the security deposit. You will not understand that it's fake until following your tenant has moved into your property. Which is worse is that this bank will charge you a return check free for that fake money order that you simply deposit in your bank checking account.
Checks
I wouldn't accept a pay attention to a credit card applicatoin fee. The reason is that this check may be bad, the check might be stolen, or perhaps the check may bounce. Unfortunately you'll not know this before you present the search for payment in the bank the place that the check was written. Just like a money order, the financial institution charges you which you fee for the returned see if it's not good. If why not try these out accept a check from the application fee you then bound to paying the cost of the tenant criminal record check out of your pocket plus the fee for your bad check.
Smart landlords would be wise to accept cash only to the application fee and the security deposit.
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