Having to rent to a new tenant is like walking into an unfamiliar dark room. By the time your eyes adjust, you may have entered some pretty deep mire that could be difficult to get out of. Renting to new tenants doesn’t have to be scary or unfamiliar territory when you check their background and credit history.
You may be wondering if you have the right to do a background or credit check on a potential tenant. The fact is that you do. When you specifically tell an applicant that you will run a credit and background check on the application and the applicant signs it, you can run the checks without worry. If you have further concerns, consult your attorney about your rights.
You would not hand over the keys to your house or car without knowing anything about a person. The same can be said for your rental properties. You could be handing over the keys to your property to anyone when you choose to do so without a credit or background check. It would be unthinkable to do this with your other property, so why should your rental property be any different?
What can this background information tell you about a tenant? For starters, your potential tenant may have a felony criminal record. You should be aware of this type of information to protect yourself and other tenants from violent or fraudulent crime. He or she may also have a history of being evicted and being sued for rent money. You need to be aware of this and other information.
Knowing a tenant’s history can save you a legal headache in the long run. Taking tenants who have no assets and no money to court can seem like an expensive and fruitless case. Knowing your employment history can help you decide if potential tenants are people who are diligent about keeping up and staying out of trouble.
It’s not easy to spot someone who could change your life by damaging your property, not paying rent on time or paying rent, or harassing other tenants. A person who seems like a perfect match for your property on first meeting may be the person you’ve wanted to avoid all along. The only way to know for sure is to take a chance.
A less risky possibility is to check the person’s credit history. A person with great credit probably won’t want to jeopardize it. They have demonstrated financial responsibility and are unlikely to suddenly forget these responsibilities. Quite frankly, a person who has shown that they care about his creditworthiness will not usually turn it down and refuse to pay his rent.
You must also verify employment through a background check. A person who has been in the same job for many years has a solid income and has shown responsibility by staying with the same company for so long. Anyone can tell you that she has a job with regular income, but the only way to know for sure is through a background check.
Your rental property is an expensive investment, and you don’t want to let anyone jeopardize your careful planning and care of your property. Renting to the wrong person can cause lost income, damage to your property, and a lot of time wasted in legal battles. You can prevent these negative things from happening when you require credit and background checks for prospective tenants.