If renter doesnt pay the rent what should you do?

It depends on where the rental unit is located as laws can differ. In the state of Ohio, you are required to present a five day notice, and if they ignore that, then you have to go to court and legally evict them. Until the court evicts them, they continue to be legal tenant of the property even though they haven't paid rent. Depending on where you are, evictions can take anywhere from 30 days to three months. Mostly, the tenants have all the rights, even if they are doing you wrong. Now, interestingly enough, I have an "abandonment" clause written in my lease. I never really paid attention to it. But last month after non-payment of rent, I delivered a five day notice to a bad payer and he moved out and just left everything. I was thinking I was going to have to go thru the eviction process, then remembered the abandonment clause. I waited fifteen days then went in and started clearing things out. Of course, the garbage had rotted and the place was unspeakably horrible, but at least I didn't have to wait 90 days to get in legally. But that will only work if your person has moved out and you have that clause in your lease. This is all anecdotal. You need to check out your local laws. Also, there is usually a tenant-landlord ombudsman who can help advise you---check with your local county. Good luck. 99% of tenants are great---it's that 1% that kills you!