Finding a responsible and reliable tenant is one of the most important elements to being a property manager and a successful tenant is found by conducting background checks. With adequate screening on the onset you eliminate potential short-term renters and long-term headaches. Real Property Management Coeur d’Alene can guide you through the screening process to find the best fit for your property while also keeping in mind discrimination and other laws that you must follow.
Rental Application Form
The first step is to create or use an application that includes all the necessary information needed to evaluate and conduct a background check. Aspects to include in your rental application include financial means, employment, and past residence information. Also you much include a section authorizing individual release forms for a background check, criminal check, and credit check. When reviewing these applications look for potential patterns like consistent turnover of employment or frequent moves, number of vehicles, etc. Also, any areas left blank on the form could be a red flag for information the tenant may be trying to hide.
Contact References
It is important to contact all references listed on the application in the background check process. The application should request references from previous landlords, employers, and character references. Real Property Management Coeur d’Alene looks for gaps in landlord history that might raise suspicion, or perhaps leaving out contact information for recent landlords which should raise suspicion. In addition to asking previous landlords if a tenant paid rent consistently, if there were any glaring turn over expensive for carpet or repairs, are they pet owners, etc. Ask questions about timeliness of payments, damage to the unit, any conflict with neighbors, if the security deposit was collected, and if the landlord would ultimately rent to this tenant again. Real Property Management Coeur d’Alene can use information from references to avoid risky renters.
Criminal Background Checks
While credit checks are vital to assessing a potential tenant’s ability to pay rent, credit checks do not tell you about a person’s criminal background. Not only are you seeking to run a profitable business, it is also your responsibility to ensure the safety of the community. It is difficult for law offenders to become home owners, so the likelihood of several of your applicants being repeat criminal offenders is fairly high. Criminal checks no longer take weeks to process and are well worth the effort. Other registered lists such as terrorist activities and sex offender lists can also be checked.
It takes a good and detailed eye to filter applications and come to the right tenant for your property and Real Property Management Coeur d’Alene can help you screen your prospective tenants to find a lasting tenant for your rental business.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.
