question for the landlords on the board?

When you find a potential tenant what info do you ask them for before approving them?

Re: question for the landlords on the board?

I have them fill out an application where I ask for their name, ss #, employer name, salary, references, and where they are currently living. I also ask if they were ever convicted of a felony, declared bankruptcy in the past 5 years, have refused to pay rent in the past, have been evicted from a residence or smoke. I also ask them to print out a copy of their credit report.

Re: question for the landlords on the board?

I ask for a copy of their credit report and make them give a security deposit to hold the apt...it would go towards their 1st months rent or i would return if I found their credit to be horrible or employment didnt check out.

Re: question for the landlords on the board?

I use a broker who does a complete background check and credit check. Plus I usually get access to 3 months worth of banking information, I also get a credit score too.

And I get this for all potential people who are interested. then I pick which one I like best. This is of no charge to me, the potential renters pay the broker's fee.

Re: question for the landlords on the board?

As an agent, I have rental applicants fill out an application with information such as current/past addresses (with current landlord's information, if applicable), current/past employment information (with supervisor's contact information), info on how many occupants will be living in the rental, whether there are any smokers or pets, whether the applicant has ever been convicted of a crime, whether the applicant has ever filed bankruptcy, whether the applicant has ever been evicted from a rental, etc.

I also run a credit report (or obtain it from the applicant's agent, if they have one) and verify income (with pay stubs, bank statements, etc.). If my landlord client wants additional information (references, etc.) we can request/obtain it.

As a real estate agent, I don't have the ability or authority to run a full criminal background check. I basically qualify people financially, and then it's up to my landlord client to decide if he or she wants to accept the tenant.

As a previous poster said, on Long Island, the tenant generally pays the broker's fee, so there's no cost to a landlord to listing a rental with a real estate agent. And I think you get a better caliber of tenant if they are seriously looking with an agent and can afford to pay the fee.

Also, a lot of potential tenants would be hesitant to give their very personal, financially sensitive information (ss #, bank and credit info) directly to a landlord who advertises online or in the paper and is a stranger. People are more willing to give over the information to a real estate agent. I always review the information and convey the relevant things to my landlord client, but I don't hand over an unredacted credit report or other sensitive info to landlord. So it's useful to have an agent as a go-between. And in my experience, for a hesitant tenant, a landlord working with an agent seems more legitimate and a safer route than responding to Craig's list, for example.

Re: question for the landlords on the board?

Thanks everyone for the info. We are going to rent a house and we were uncomfortable about giving out some of the info they asked for and its been worked out. Your information helped a lot.