Whether you are a bank or an independent investor, looking to rent out a home, the most important decision you’ll have to make after you decide on the property is deciding on the tenant. Effective tenant screening can mean the difference between having long-term tenants, who maintain your property and pay on time and short-term tenants, who always pay late and move out as soon as their leas is up, leaving the property in need of repair.
Selecting a Tenant: What to Look For
Good tenant selection will be an invaluable resource to you.
Good tenant selection ensures that your investment property is safe and you can rely on the monthly income to supplement the costs. However, a bad tenant can be nightmarish. If you have a tenant who damages your property or refuses to pay rent on time, you may be faced with having to recoup your money and evict the tenant, neither of which is without its problems and financial concerns not to mention easy.
So, how is it that you go about the process of tenant selection?
At Palace Property Management, the first part of our process is screening the applicants. We make sure we have an in depth tenant application available. We have all prospective tenants fill the application out completely then we thoroughly check their credentials. We do a background and credit checks in order to make sure they are the type of tenant you want occupying your home and that they have the job stability necessary to maintain a good landlord and tenant relationship.
You need a professional to screen prospective tenants.
Do you know what questions are most important, on your tenant application? Do you know what questions you are legally prohibited from asking a prospective tenant? You must screen, but not discriminate.
Our team of professional property managers are very aware of both local and national laws, regarding tenant screening. We do not want to open you or ourselves to allegations of discrimination. So, we make sure that we strictly abide by all related laws, during the tenant selection process. When we have several candidates who fit your needs, following the thorough credit and background check, we then move on to the interview process. This part of the process is where we ask questions to determine if the prospective tenants will get along well with neighbors and seem like they would be a positive addition to the neighborhood. Here again, it is important to know what questions to ask and what questions not to ask. We also keep thorough records of the interview and application materials for all who apply.
Tenant selection done right, is a lot of work. References have to be checked, employment histories verified, credit reports run and more. However, as much hard work as it may seem, it’s nothing compared to the stress and anxiety that comes with a tenant selection gone wrong. In the long run, proper due diligence will save you hours of work and can possibly save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars, in unnecessary costs. With proper tenant screening, you will have a great, long-term tenant and a good relationship, for the duration of their stay in your home