Do you actually do a credit check on them?
Or do you just call their previous references.
I was watching Pacific Heights the other night…and it reminded me how it’s pretty easy for someone to just give you a reference who will speak “the world” about that person.
If you actually do credit checks…is there an online service that you can work through?
I’d really like to nail down a good process for screening tenants.
I’m sure this topic has probably already been addressed…
Anyways…thanks for the thought.
-Mike
Mike,
I do a credit check on them and call at least two (preferably three) previous landlords. I also call their boss to verify their employment and their income. While I have their boss on the phone, I ask a very telling question: “If you had a $XX,XXX houe would you rent it to ‘Bob’?”…Listen for any hesitation or the infamous “pregnant pause”…
I also will call any personal references that they have provided.
For on-line credit checks, I use http://www.tenantcredit.com/ and have been happy with them. The basic crediet check is $6, I think.
Hope this helps…
Keith
Thanks Keith,
Just the type of quick recap I was looking for.
-Mike
Remember tenants don’t turn bad in our property, they were bad when they moved in. I do credit, criminal background and rental history checks. I get this for $25 which I pay for with their nonrefundable $35 application fee. I use NTN which works really well. They will also call employers and references and recommend (using your criteria) if the income to rent ration is ok or not. www.NTNonline.com
Hi Bluemoon,
Thanks for the add’l info…
-Mike