If you are a new or seasoned landlord, it is always a good idea to update your skills for tenant selection. The tools that become available to help you choose the optimal tenant become larger and larger as technology advances. Only limited tools were available years ago; however, the tools available have grown so much that it is a chore to keep track of all the upgrades.
Initial Applications and Pre-Approving
When someone first puts in the offer to lease your property, the first step is to collect some basic information. Some of this basic information is does the tenant have pets, do they smoke, the current employer of the tenant, previous addresses, and other basic information. There are plenty of free applications available off of the internet for download.
The following is an example of a lease application.
Once you have received a series of applications, then it is best to review the applications to see if there are any applicants that can be easily removed. Once you have reduced the amount of potential tenants, then it is best to start checking initial references. It is also a good idea to check the references of the references. For example, if someone claims to work for a particular company, then for most company’s, you can contact the HR department and confirm that the person actually works there.
Once you have successfully spoke with enough references, then it is time to investigate with even more in depth tools.
Amazing Tools to get Background Checks on Tenants
With the advent of the digital age, it is almost scary how much information can be found on the internet. The first thing that you should check is a persons credit report; unfortunately, you will not be able to see there credit score; however, you will get some information that can only be found on the credit report. The first thing is the potential tenants current address. Make sure that this matches the tenants current address and the reference that you spoke to is the landlord for that address.
The second thing to review is the ratings. All the rating should be R1 or I1 rating. If they are anything less, then the potential tenant may have some financial difficulties. Also, make sure that the balances on their accounts are low. If they have high balances, then it could indicate that live off of credit. Also, make sure that they have no outstanding collections.
Google and Social Networks
Google, Facebook, and other social networking sites are a great way to get even more background information on someone. By googling someones name, most of the time it will provide you with some very important details about the person you are allowing to live under your roof. Many times when you google someones name, you find out details that you should know, or that the person has never told you. Also, by reviewing a persons Facebook profile, this can tell you a lot about the individual.
If all these items check out and the tenant still seems like a great person, then you may have just found the perfect tenant. Someone who is clean, quiet, pays there rent on time, and is a hard working individual is the characteristics that you are looking for. Using these tools, it should allow you to find the perfect tenant that much easier.
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