Selecting Tenants

Posted on: June 06, 2007

A careful screening process is the best tool for qualifying tenants, and should include all of the following steps:

1. Each adult prospect should fill out a separate application.


2. Contact present and previous owners/managers.


3. Verify employment income and bank accounts.


4. If possible, drive by their current residence.


5. Run a full check through a tenant screening company. Landlord.com recommends a local company called National Tenant Network. In a good rental market you can often pass this cost onto your applicants.


6. Make a decision and notify the applicant accordingly.


7. Keep the application for up to two years.

Using a screening process can help you avoid losses from evictions, skip-outs, delinquencies, damages, or bad checks by uncovering an applicant’s rental history. Screening assists you in making rental decisions that are based on verifiable qualifications and not discriminatory reasons. Some reasons to turn an applicant down include:

1. She will not furnish references from a previous landlord.
2. Applicant has a pet and your policy firmly prohibits pets (with an exception for hearing or vision impaired assistance animals).
3. She has many unpaid bills.


4. His income is less than three times the monthly rent.
   
5. Applicant can’t pay full month’s rent in advance.
   
6. He can’t pay security deposit in advance.
   
7. Applicant has several large objects that cannot be stored on premises, and he/she refuses to store them elsewhere.
   
8. She is a minor with no responsible adult to co-sign.
   
9. He wants to use a waterbed.
   
10. She cannot provide identification.
    
11. Applicant plans to use the rental for a purpose other than living in the unit.
    
12. He wants to have more than the permitted number of vehicles on the premises.
    
13. He will not complete and sign the rental application.
    
14. He fails to sign and complete rental agreement.
    
15. She gives false information on the application or rental forms.
    

Remember to treat every applicant fairly and equally. Make sure your policies follow the law and are applied equally to all prospects.