Tenant screening is among the most critical steps in rental property management, but it’s also easy to slip up and create some mistakes sooner or later. Whether it’s authorizing personal biases to influence decisions or omitting essential parts of the background check, skipping key steps in the screening process can generate significant issues, including late payments, property damage, high turnover, and even legal complications.
It is good to know that avoiding these mistakes can help you attract high-quality tenants and keep your properties running smoothly. Let’s take a look at a few common tenant screening mistakes and share some practical tips to avoid them.
Mistake #1: Failing to Screen Consistently
Staying consistent is vital for effective tenant screening. It’s really critical to stay consistent by utilizing the same criteria for every applicant. This way, you can prevent allowing emotions or personal biases to influence your decisions. It’s critical to understand the risks that come with not screening regularly and fairly. You might miss out on a great tenant and could even encounter potential lawsuits for discrimination.
Legal action can be laborious and expensive, so it’s something all rental property owners should work to avoid. Numerous state and federal laws prohibit discrimination in housing, and it is important to understand how these laws are applied and to maintain a compliant screening process.
Mistake #2: Not Checking the Right References
One more common mistake during screening is overlooking to verify the correct references. When you’re going through the application process, it’s advisable to ask for personal and professional references from prospective tenants in addition to previous landlords. You need to consider employment history, financial references, and personal character references as suitable kinds of references to request. Keep in mind to reach out to all of these references and ask the right questions.
For illustration, you might need to ask them how long they’ve known the applicant, their job performance, how well they care for their current living space, and if they’ve spotted any concerning signs. Depending on the type of reference, you should customize your list of questions appropriately.
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 quite common in rental markets nationwide, but some property owners and managers still forget this opportunity to learn valuable information about their renters.
Credit and background checks give information about a person’s history and can help you identify possible red flags, such as prior evictions, criminal history, or financial difficulties. While not every bad item on a credit report or a background check means an application will be excluded, these valuations do give you what you need to make an informed decision about your next tenant.
Mistake #4: Ignoring Rental History
One of the major mistakes a rental property manager can make is not reviewing a potential applicant’s rental history. Rental history is vital to check because it can give you an awareness of a renter’s likely future behavior.
When searching for rental history, observe potential warning signs, such as delayed payments, property damage, and other lease agreement violations. Even though it is recommended not to depend on your entire decision on a previous landlord’s report of a person, specifically if there were disagreements during the rental period, it can give a helpful understanding of how the applicant is likely to behave as a renter.
Mistake #5: Inadequate Communication with Applicants
Lastly, one more common mistake rental property owners and managers make during the screening process is neglecting to communicate clearly and consistently with the applicant. Hunting for a rental home can be a stressful experience for renters, and it’s easy for frustration to increase and bring about negative feelings. Remember that your renter’s experience begins with the first interaction with you and will continue throughout your association, no matter how long it lasts.
To foster a positive relationship with your tenant, start by being transparent about your application requirements, timelines, and how your decision will be communicated. In this fashion, you can avoid misunderstandings that could irritate or discourage applicants and result in negative reviews.
Get Your Screening Process Right!
By implementing these tips and strategies, you’ll be able to avoid the top mistakes rental property owners and managers make during the screening process. This, in turn, can bring about better tenant retention, less frustration, and even boost your reputation as a landlord.
Thorough tenant screening can be time-consuming. Do you want to hand this obligation over to the experts and enhance your tenant screening in East Nashville? Consult with Real Property Management Concordia. Our exceptional services cover a streamlined screening process, ensure legal compliance, and more. Contact us online or call 623-217-0413 for expert property management services.
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