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Keep a paper trail: tenants should request receipts and track payments, advocate advises
Summary
At a Beacon tenant seminar, an attorney advised tenants to avoid cash payments and to request receipts (excluding personal checks), to use memo lines and retain money-order stubs or portal records so payments can be proven in court.
George Haddad told attendees that payment documentation is a frequent point of contention in housing court and that tenants should avoid paying cash when possible.
"The landlord's obligation to provide you with a receipt upon your request as long as you're not paying by personal check," Haddad said, listing the receipt elements tenants should demand: date, amount paid, property address and the name of the person receiving payment.
Haddad explained why recorded payment evidence matters in court: receipts or bank records remove disputes about whether rent was accepted and can stop landlords from reclassifying payments as fees to create arrears. He recommended using memo lines on checks, keeping money-order stubs and preserving Zelle or portal confirmations.
Tenants in the audience described instances where landlords later claimed they had not been paid; Haddad said those cases are common and that documented proof often changes how judges resolve nonpayment claims.
