How to Relieve the Hassle of Screening Tenants

Landlords face the tall task of approving tenants. These tips will help you rid of the headache that comes with the process.

It’s essentially a given that bad tenants can wreak havoc on your property and can even cause discourse amongst your other tenants. This can create a substantial amount of problems that you, the landlord, must deal with. It’s a headache, a hassle, and a waste of money. At the very least, you should run tenant background checks to ensure that you are allowing a trustworthy individual (or individuals) to respect your property. Here are some tips on how you can go about doing this.

The Screening Process

One of the most common mistakes that landlords make is completing the screening process after the candidate fills out the application – and tenant screening services cost money. You’ve missed the first step of filtering out these terrible tenants. Most landlords should starting screening their applicants at the first point of contact. Now, this means before you even show the person around your property. This way, you won’t waste yours or his or her time. Pre-qualifying each tenant as early as possible will help the process run along much smoother. Remember, you want tenants that are serious about renting so start off by asking questions and inquiring whether or not they want to rent. Again, you’ll be wasting valuable time by not doing so.

Some Important Questions to Ask

While it may seem like you’re inquiring into their personal life, it’s actually for the benefit of your property. Ask specific questions that relate to why they’re moving, when they want to move in, what their monthly income is. The answers that he or she provides can surface some serious red flags. Try to avoid tenants that are prone to moving because of recurring evictions. Who’s to say that they won’t be evicted again? Also, avoid tenants that tend to complain about their current living situation. More than likely, they’ll bring their current problems along with them into your property – and will just give you headache after headache. Instead, look for legitimate answers that seem reasonable like they need a larger place for their family or they are changing jobs and require a closer location.

Most tenants believe that being eager to move in will help seal the deal. Telling you that they’re going to move in tomorrow or the following week means that they aren’t good at planning. Realistically, they won’t move in until the next month and most landlords require a 30 day notice from their tenants if they plan to move out. Irresponsibility is another red flag and tenants that display it vividly should be ruled out immediately. This could translate to late payments, bad relationships, and other issues.

Tenant Screening Services, LLC can help you procure the right tenant or employer with a trusted landlord credit check service, tenant screening service, and more. Visit them online today.