CA owner’s action plan

When Your Property Manager Is Late Paying You

A pattern of late owner distributions usually isn't a clerical issue. It's the firm using rent float to fund operations. The PMA says one thing; what's actually happening on your account is something else. The recurring pattern matters because California law puts firm timing rules on trust funds.

What B&P §10145 actually requires

California Business & Professions Code §10145 requires real estate brokers (including those acting as property managers) to deposit trust funds — including rent collected on your behalf — into a trust account "as soon as practicable" and within three business days of receipt. The PMA then governs when those funds get disbursed to you, but the trust account itself is mandatory.

If your firm is missing the disbursement date set in the PMA by days or weeks repeatedly, two things may be happening: (1) administrative dysfunction, or (2) the firm is using float on owner funds to cover other operations. The second is a serious compliance issue regardless of intent.

The escalation sequence when distributions are chronically late

Document the pattern. List the last 3–6 disbursement dates against what the PMA specifies. The pattern is what makes the case.
Written demand for an accounting. Send by certified mail. Request a full reconciliation of rent collected, fees deducted, and amounts disbursed for the period in question, with a five-business-day deadline.
DRE complaint if the response is inadequate. Trust fund handling is a serious DRE matter. File at dre.ca.gov with the documentation.
Switch firms in parallel. The relationship is over either way once the demand letter is sent.

What if the firm has already missed two months?

Missing two months of owner distributions is no longer a "late payment" question — it's potential trust fund misappropriation. See the full emergency guide: property manager not paying owner. The action sequence shifts to immediate written demand + parallel DRE complaint + attorney consultation, in that order, within the first 10 business days.

Related guides

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