Ugh, Sandy that is horrible!
You can't file on everyone, but if you file on some but not others, you could be in violation of fair housing law.
We do it this way:
The first late payment, they get a late fee of $75 and a non-compliance notice.
The second late payment, they get a $125 late fee and a non-compliance notice.
The third late payment, they get a fee of $125 plus 5% of their rent.
Fourth late payment, they get a "For Cause" termination notice, which says they must comply with the rental agreement within 2 weeks or vacate within 30 days, and that if the same violation occurs within 6 months, they will get a ten day repeat violation notice with no option to stay.
If the resident complies for six months, but then falls back into old habits, we do not renew their lease, and give them a notice of termination to move out by the last day of their lease.
If legal, and I'm not sure if it would be, I would count the late payments of each resident, and the ones that have had the most lates in a year, or the most consecutive lates would be the first to go, then on down the list.