More About Tenant Credit Check

By Ruth Schmidt


As a landlord, you may be worried about how to make a selection of rentals to occupy your rooms. The process of vetting them is quite complex and may pose serious challenges especially in the event where you had a hard time with occupants in the past or even present. A background check is useful, and that is why you need to know all about tenant credit check.

This is a report on the history of potential rental based on interactions with past landlords. It captures events of evictions, and outstanding debts owed to previous property-owners or major creditors. The report has some limitations too. First, it does not say much about the moral character of an applicant. It also does not provide enough criminal record of the potential client.

Equally important is the knowledge of what the client needs to know before you hire someone to generate the report. You are required by law to seek his or her permission first, explain about the records you want to access and finalize by giving your intentions for the information. Hence it is important to be clear in your application form to site all this information beforehand.

The federal law requirements are also subject to the application for a tenant screening. The law requires that you provide the contact information of a third party you want to hire to obtain the report. Making sure you submit this information in good time is crucial. You are also required to give adverse action letter to any applicant whom you find unworthy to rent your property with reasons in regard to the derived statement.

Here are also some tips to ensure you get a suitable report. It is advised that you opt for a recognized score report because of the benefits that accrue with its use. First, they are blind to gender, age, and even locality. The report generated is just a number derived by a complex mathematical algorithm that quantifies a figure based on debt handling in the past life of the applicant. It also offers some form of protection against lawsuits.

Some of the red flags to highlight in any report would include outstanding collections with former landlords. These could be balances from that skipped out of an immature broken lease or unpaid rent in the last months. If there are still more unpaid utility bills, car loans and insurance premiums would be warning signs. All these could be indications incapability to pay rent on the side of an applicant.

Using the third party for screening service is ideal due to the following benefits. Reputable companies will have their source of information regularly updated and therefore conversant with present laws, and updated information will be derived. They can still send notifications of adverse action letters on your behalf as a property-owner in the event you disapprove a given application based on what you got.

It is also possible to get quality information that reflects real situation, especially where the company takes enough time to generate reports from various sources. Where the staff are well trained and certified by the relevant bodies are likely to offer quality services.




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