One of the most stressful aspects of being a St. George, UT
property manager is the ability to screen prospective tenants. It can be an arduous and tedious process that, if not done effectively, can still leave you with a less-than-desirable tenant even after all the work you put into the selection process. It is very important to make sure that you
arm yourself with the necessary knowledge of how to properly screen tenants so that you can avoid spending too much time doing it and get the best tenant possible. This article will explain the different ways that must be considered when choosing from a pool of prospective tenants.
Credit History
Evaluating someone’s credit history is not a foolproof and guaranteed way of choosing a tenant who will pay their bills, but its track record is good enough that you must never overlook it. This is a good way to get an idea of their financial responsibility. Take a look at their financial background by viewing their FICO score and making a conclusion. Remember that the financial crash of 2008 put many good and responsible people in a bad position, so don’t let someone’s credit history be the be-all-end-all decision maker for you. But still require credit checks no matter what.
Income Verification
Income verification is important because the last thing you want is to mistakenly choose a tenant who in reality can’t even afford to live there. A common way that St. George, UT property managers avoid this is by requiring all prospective tenants to provide check stubs from the last two or three months. This is also a way that you can verify that the person actually has a job, let alone income. You can even have them provide statements from whatever bank they use and if you feel it necessary, tax records.
National Criminal History
You probably don’t want a registered sex offender or another felon living in your property. Check their criminal history and make sure you double check everything. The importance of checking this is pretty obvious.
Eviction & Rental History
There have been many instances, enough that it’s a foreseeable issue, of tenants appearing to pass income and credit checks, but surprisingly have a history of being evicted or dispossessed. You can filter these tenants out by searching a person’s eviction and rental history.
Dealing with eviction and going through that process as a St. George property manager is usually very time consuming and surprisingly expensive. You don’t want to have to deal with that so make sure you check their eviction and rental history.
Interview the Prospective Tenant
We know that sometimes there just isn’t enough time in your daily life to
interview every single tenant who’s interested in renting your place. Many times there are so many applicants that it’s just not possible. However, consider interviewing some of them - maybe the ones that are on the top of your list for consideration. And if you do end of having time to interview all of them, by all means, do it. Seeing these people in person will give you a better feel for them than perhaps any other method. Many St. George property managers feel this way and you can probably imagine why. Imagine if employers never did face-to-face interviews and only hired people based on their resumes alone. That would be a disaster. Though not perfectly comparable, the same could potentially be said about selecting tenants. Remember that you can also do an effective interview over the phone.
Conclusion
Take the time to screen prospective tenants in as many ways as is feasibly possible. You will avoid so many potential headaches by doing so.
Screen Prospective Tenants
-Holiday Resort Realty-
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