Tenants are a landlord’s bread and butter. Their rent money either covers the mortgage costs or provides an income for a landlord, minus costs, of course. Good tenants pay their rent on time and life is peachy, but bad tenants rarely pay their rent on time (if at all), and often cause significant property damage during their time in residence. They are also difficult to get rid of.
Experienced landlords understand the merits of only taking on good tenants. If a property portfolio is a significant part of your monthly income, you literally cannot afford to let a rogue tenant move in. Not only will it leave you out of pocket, but it will also cause you a lot of sleepless nights, stress, and anxiety.
The best way to avoid letting a property to a nightmare tenant is to implement an effective tenant screening process. This will weed out any undesirable applicants. It’s not fool-proof, but it does lower your risk.
Meet the Tenant in Person
An in-person meeting is far superior to a telephone conversation or email exchange. When you are speaking to a person face-to-face, you can read their body language and pick up subliminal clues about them. For example, if a prospective tenant claims to be a non-smoker, yet smells of cigarette smoke, be suspicious. If they say they have no pets but are covered in pet hair, it’s a dead cert they are lying through their teeth.
Cross-Check the Information Given to You
Always check any information given to you, such as their previous address, former landlords, employer, etc. Don’t assume because an applicant seems really nice and respectable, they are not lying to you. Some people are very good at pretending to be someone they are not.
Run Credit and ID Checks
Continuing on from the last point, run credit and ID checks before you accept a new tenant. If you use a property management company, they might undertake this as part of a tenant finding service.
Rental property management companies like BMG make life easier for inexperienced landlords. These rental property management companies take care of day-to-day tenant management, maintenance, and more. They screen tenants, which saves you from worrying about who you’re taking on.
Speak to the Tenant’s References
It’s customary to ask a prospective tenant to provide references. Give these references a call, so you can make sure they are legitimate. Some disreputable tenants will use a friend or relative as their reference, who then provides a glowing description of how awesome the tenant is, even though they trashed their last rental home.
Check the Applicant’s Social Media Profiles
Social media is your friend when screening tenants. Look out for photos that suggest a prospective tenant lives a party-hard lifestyle or abuses drugs and alcohol. Other red flags include photos of pets when they claim not to have any and signs they are in a relationship when they have stated they are single.
Listen to your gut when screening tenants. If something feels amiss, it probably is. Do you really want to take that risk?
