Certificate of Rent Paid - CRP's

If you're a residential rental property owner in Minnesota, you are required to issue a CRP (Certificate of Rent Paid) to each of your tenants by January 31, 2008.  The CRP verifies the rent each of your tenants paid in 2007.  The State of Minnesota website has the forms on this page (It only works with Internet Explorer.) under "CRP Instructions for Landlords". 

Like all small time landlords, I stall and stall in issuing the CRP's.  It's not a hard job, just a pesky one.  It's fussy work.  In previous years I have filled out one form by hand which contained the information that was consistent on all the forms.  Information like the PID (Property Identification) number and the owner's name and address did not change on the individual tenant copies.  I would copy the one that was partially completed and add the variables for each tenant by hand.  Information about each unit, the length of residency, etc., all differed by tenant. 

Imagine my surprise when I clicked on the forms link (from my own blog I might mention), opened the form I needed, and found that this year the CRP form can be filled in (not filed) on-line and then printed for the tenants!  The State of Minnesota has finally joined the age of technology!   

What a relief.  I accomplished the same putsy task in half the time because I type faster than I write.  The same constants could be typed in including the tenants' addresses and all I had to change was the unit numbers and the months of residency. 

The CRP's are done.  I'm happy.  My tenants will be thrilled to be able to read the form for a change.  (I used to have beautiful penmanship BEFORE real estate.)  The State has shown its ability to change with the times.  We're all moving on.

If you've got this dastardly task to do yet, check out the link above.  You, too, may be thrilled with the new improved forms.

Comments

[John Gall]

I wish I had seen this post before I just prepared my Certificate Of Rent Paid forms by hand. Luckily I have Adobe Acrobat so I could at least edit the form electronically and just change the name of my tenants.