Tenant screening is one of the most important steps in rental property management, but undoubtedly, it’s rather easy to make mistakes that could induce financially excessive headaches thereafter. Whether it’s letting personal biases influence decisions or skipping essential parts of the background check, failing to implement key steps in the screening process can set in motion major issues such as late payments, property damage, high turnover, and even legal complications.
The excellent news is that avoiding these mistakes can tremendously help you attract high-quality tenants and keep your properties running smoothly. Here are some of the most common tenant screening mistakes and a number of practical tips on how to steer away from them.
Mistake #1: Failing to Screen Consistently
Consistency is the crucial key to effective tenant screening. A large part of consistency is safeguarding that you are executing the same criteria for every applicant rather than letting emotions or personal biases influence your decisions. There are a number of risks of failing to screen consistently and objectively, some of which are missed opportunities for a great tenant and even potential discrimination lawsuits.
Legal action is both time-consumingly protracted and, sadly, very expensive and a bad outcome all rental property owners should work actively to avoid. Majority of state and federal laws prohibit discrimination in housing, and it is critical to understand how those laws apply to you and to constantly keep your screening process in compliance.
Mistake #2: Not Checking the Right References
One other top mistake during screening is failing to check the right references. As part of the application process, you should carefully ask prospective tenants for personal and professional references and, at the same time, previous landlords. Employment history, financial references, and personal character references are all suitable types of references to seek for. Having said that, make sure to actually contact all of these references and ask the right questions.
For example, you could ask them how long they’ve known the applicant, their job performance, how well they care for their current living space, and any red flags they distinguished. Conditional on the type of reference, you should tweak and customize your list of questions accordingly.
Mistake #3: Overlooking Credit and Background Checks
A third big mistake in tenant screening is failing to run credit and background checks on the applicant. Both assessments are legitimately standard in rental markets nationwide, but then again, considerable property owners and managers still miss this opportunity to learn valuable information about their renters.
Credit and background checks tell a story relating to a person and can help you identify possible red flags, particularly prior evictions, criminal history, or financial difficulties. While not every negative item on a credit report or a background check is an automatic cause for rejecting an application, these checks do impart to you precisely what you need to make an informed decision about your next tenant.
Mistake #4: Ignoring Rental History
Surely the most terrible mistake a rental property manager can make is not verifying the rental history for an applicant. Rental history is critical to scrutinize on the account that it can give you worthwhile insights into a renter’s likely future behavior.
When substantiating rental history, bear in mind to watch for potential red flags similar to late payments, property damage, and other lease agreement violations. While your entire decision should not be established on a previous landlord’s report of a person, chiefly if there were disagreements during the rental period, it can extend pertinent insight into how the applicant will behave as a renter.
Mistake #5: Inadequate Communication with Applicants
One final thing, a last mistake rental property owners and managers make during the screening process is failing to communicate clearly and consistently with the applicant. Applying for a rental home can be a stressful experience for a renter, and frustration can very quickly turn into bad feelings. Call to mind that your renter’s experience typically starts with the first interaction with you and will continue throughout your association, however long that may be.
To foster a positive relationship with your tenant, make a successful start with transparency on your application requirements, timelines, and how your decision will be communicated. This way, you can carefully avoid misunderstandings that could frustrate or hinder applicants and result in negative reviews.
Get Your Screening Process Right!
By conforming to these tips and strategies, you can entirely avoid the top mistakes rental property owners and managers make during the screening process. This, in turn, can develop better tenant retention, fewer troubles, and even boost your reputation as a landlord.
Detailed tenant screening can be hard and time-consuming. If you’d want to leave this task to professionals and appropriately enhance your tenant screening in Pasadena, contact Real Property Management Fairmate. Our exceptional services incorporate a streamlined screening process, total compliance with all housing laws, and much more! Contact us online or call 626-691-9749 for excellent property management services.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.
