Implementing Tenant Screening Effectively and Appropriately

Discover the ins and outs of implementing tenant screening and learn more about why it is so important to landlords… and tenants alike!

A huge amount of people throughout the USA actually rent homes, as opposed to owning them. To put it simply, many individuals or families just cannot afford a home loan, or they might not be in a position where they can purchase a home. For this reason, renting housing might be their best bet. Landlords are facing with the burden of vetting people who are seeking to become tenants of their properties, and as you can imagine, it is not a simple process.

Key Questions to Ask for Implementing Tenant Screening Effectively

In a perfect world, we’d just happily welcome someone to become a tenant, but in practical terms, it is important for landlords and real estate management companies to make sure that they are dealing with people who actually can be trusted. Questions to ask for implementing tenant screening effectively can be:

• Are they going to pay the rent on time?
• Are they going to comply with the rules?
• Are they going to undertake a criminal activity or associated with criminals in the property?
• Are they going to use illegal drugs in the properties?

Weeding out the Good from the Bad

It’s quite hard (if not impossible) to predict what a tenant might do, but one thing’s for sure: their records can give landlords a pretty good indication of the financial trustworthiness and character reliability of any given person. For this reason, implementing tenant screening are quite sought-after, and they are becoming increasingly more popular throughout the US, and of course, even elsewhere around the world.

When you are renting out your valued property, the last thing you want is a slacker tenant! You deserve someone who will treat your property with respect, pay your rent on time, and don’t cause any beef with other roommates and/or neighborhoods. “Bad” tenants aren’t just a nuisance: they can actually cause significant losses to a landlord, and in some cases, even annoying (not to mention costly) legal troubles.

Who is the Perfect Tenant?

Before you start implementing tenant screening for their potential, it is very important to take a step back and ask yourself a question: who is your perfect tenant? It is really helpful for a landlord to gain a better perspective on what the perfect applicant should be like. Many landlords do indeed look for specific qualities.

For example, they might seek out potential tenants with a steady income, people who seem personally tidy and well-mannered, or people who have the intention to rent the place on a long-term basis, among other parameters. In some cases, demographic screening criteria are also applied.

Another instance, a landlord who owns property in a notoriously quiet residential area for families will probably not rent out the place to a bunch of students, who are more likely to get rowdy and party till the wee hours of the morning! Of course, this doesn’t mean that students are bad tenants and families are good–it’s really all a matter of what and who will fit any specific individual scenario.