Property managers and landlords may be concerned with their tenant applicant’s past behavior as a tenant, including any eviction record proceedings that were filed against them, but also their criminal record and credit history. Running complete tenant background check reports can provide landlords with insight into the applicant’s character and sense of responsibility before signing lease contracts.
According to a consumer credit bureau survey, only half of landlords routinely conduct a rental background check before handing over the keys to a new tenant. Failing to run a complete tenant background check can result future eviction proceedings, failure to pay rent or time and even damage to the property.
Tenant Background Check Reports:
Credit Reports – these reports will include the applicant’s credit score and history of payments and balance over the past 7 years. Tenants that have history of delinquency on bills are likely to be late on rent or even fail to pay.
Criminal Records – reports include the past 7 years in criminal convictions and will also include a sex offender registry search. While small misdemeanor convictions may not pose a threat to the property or landlord, there are other crimes including felonies that landlords may need to make their rental decisions.
Eviction Records – these are civil court record proceedings filed against tenants to evict them for various reasons. In the past these reports were part of credit checks, but they are no longer offered, making it necessary to run them separately. Statistically, people that have been evicted in the past are more likely to be evicted again.
Landlord Reference Checks – calling and talking to previous landlords can help landlords and property managers determine what type of tenant the applicant has been in the past and give insight into their character.
Employment Verification – calling current and previous employers can confirm employment to make sure that the applicant is still employed and verify that the information and timelines on their application is accurate.
In conclusion, running a comprehensive tenant background check on each applicant that will occupy a property can provide landlords and property managers with an informative review of the person’s character, credit history and raise possible red flags that the landlord would want to avoid. AAA Credit Screening’s tenant verification services can provide landlords with these reports and can customize packages to fit client needs.
