When it comes to renting out property, one of the most important questions for landlords is: Will tenants pay on time? To answer that, Baselane, a banking and financial platform for landlords, looked at nearly 100,000 rent payments across U.S. cities. The findings reveal a clear gap when it comes to on-time rent payments.
The Cities Leading the Way For On-Time Rent Payments
The good news: some cities consistently see high on-time rent payment rates, offering peace of mind to landlords and predictability for tenants.
- San Francisco – 85%
- Long Beach – 85%
- Seattle – 84%
- Tucson – 84%
- Raleigh – 81%
In these cities, more than 80% of tenants are paying rent on time. For landlords, that means fewer late rent notices and stronger, more reliable cash flow.
The Worst Cities for On-Time Rent Payment
But not all cities are performing well. The data shows that in some markets, landlords face late payments nearly half the time:
- Milwaukee – 68%
- Sacramento – 59%
- Houston – 58%
- Detroit – 54%
- Memphis – 50%
That means in Memphis, tenants paid rent on time only half the time. For landlords in these markets, late payments can quickly add up to financial strain.
Why This Data Matters
Payment behavior doesn’t just affect landlords. Renters who pay late can face fees, damage their credit, and strain their relationships with their landlords. On the other side, late payments impact property owners who rely on rental income to cover mortgages, property taxes, and maintenance costs.
As Mathias Korder Fort, CEO of Baselane, explains:
“On-time rent payments are the backbone of the landlord-tenant relationship. This data helps illustrate just how much payment behavior can vary from city to city, and why property owners must understand these trends. For landlords, it means anticipating where cash flow may be more predictable and where they may need to prepare for challenges. For tenants, it’s a reminder of how late payments can create financial stress on both sides.”
What Landlords Can Do
Regardless of where you own property, late payments are a common aspect of the rental business. But landlords can take proactive steps to reduce the risk:
- Offer online payment options to make paying easy and automatic.
- Communicate clearly with tenants about due dates and late fees.
- Screen tenants carefully to evaluate payment histories before signing leases.
- Use landlord tools like Baselane to track, automate, and collect payments efficiently.
Baselane helps landlords directly tackle this issue by automating the entire rent collection process, reducing friction for tenants and ensuring predictable cash flow. Here are some of the tools Baselane users have access to to prevent late payments:
- Automatic rent reminders and the option for tenants to enroll in autopay, so payments are never forgotten.
- Multiple payment methods, including credit card and bank transfer, giving tenants flexibility to pay rent on time.
- Built-in payment plan options that let tenants split rent into smaller, more manageable weekly payments instead of one large monthly sum.
- Credit reporting on on-time rent payments, helping tenants build their credit history while incentivizing punctuality.
Methodology
Our analysis covered the 50 largest U.S. cities, excluding any with fewer than 500 payments on the Baselane platform. Across all 93,383 rent payments in the sample, the national average hovers between the best and worst performers — but the gap is wide, showing how much geography matters when it comes to tenant reliability.
FAQs
What percentage of renters pay on time in top U.S. cities?
Top-performing cities like San Francisco, Long Beach, and Seattle see ≈ 80–85% of tenants paying rent on time. Baselane’s analysis shows that in those cities, on‑time rent payments are much more reliable for landlords.
Which cities have the worst rent payment habits?
Cities such as Milwaukee (~68%), Sacramento (~59%), Houston (~58%), Detroit (~54%), and Memphis (~50%) fall toward the bottom. In Memphis, for example, only half of rent payments are made on time.
Why does rent payment behavior vary so much by city?
Differences in local economic conditions, tenant demographics, rental market tightness, and availability of payment tools (e.g. autopay, online rent collection) all contribute. Baselane’s data shows geography plays a big role in predicting payment reliability.
What can landlords do to reduce late rent payments?
Some best practices include offering online and auto‑payment options, making late fee policies clear upfront, screening tenants’ payment histories, and using tools that allow reminders or autopay. Baselane also suggests flexible payment plans for tenants when needed.
How many rent payments were analyzed in the Baselane study, and which cities were included?
The study looked at ~93,383 rent payments across the 50 largest U.S. cities, though only cities with at least 500 payment records on the Baselane platform were included.
