Tenant screening is a process that examines the rental and financial pasts of prospective tenants who have applied for a rental property. The goal of tenant screening is to find high-quality candidates and weed out applicants that are a high risk for evictions, property damage, and missed payments.
Here at Laureate, we provide a range of property management services to our clients, including tenant screening. In this tenant screening guide, we will highlight the benefits of tenant screening and why you should utilize it.
This includes finding high-quality tenants, minimizing tenant turnover, protecting your property from criminals, and understanding their financial situation. Let's get started with these tenant screening benefits.
Find High-Quality Tenants
As a landlord, it is always the priority to find a tenant who pays on time, rarely has maintenance requests, and doesn't disturb their neighbours. These kinds of tenants are invaluable. The best way to find tenants of this quality is through tenant screening.
Low-quality tenants, on the other hand, can make a landlord's life very difficult. Even if they are difficult, it may not be possible to evict tenants. This can mean you may be stuck with them until their lease runs out. Tenant screening avoids this risk in the first place.
Minimize Tenant Turnover
There are costs associated with finding a new tenant. These include advertising the vacancy, screening prospective tenants, carrying out repairs, and cleaning the unit.
Therefore, it stands to reason that landlord prefer reliable tenants who are willing to sign longer leases/renew their leases when the time comes. Screening tenants can help to identify the kinds of applicants who are less likely to move on after only a short time.
Protecting Property From Criminals
A full criminal background check should form part of your screening process. If a prospective tenant has a criminal history, you will be able to understand this and make a fully informed decision.
This step will help to protect both your property and its content as well as the local community as a whole.
Understand Their Financial Situation
A complete credit report is another important aspect of the tenant screening process. It can alter landlords about potential financial issues, such as a low credit score and debt-to-income ratio.
It's also helpful to know how recently any debts have occurred. In some cases, prospective tenants may have faced financials in the past but are now in a position to make all payments on time. Payment history can also be gathered from previous landlords.
Understanding the Many Benefits of Tenant Screening
The bottom line is that tenant screening is highly recommended. It can help landlords to find high-quality tenants who are a joy to deal with. If you have experienced issues with tenants in the past, you will likely appreciate the value of screening a tenant already.
In Denver, your premier property management company is Laureate. We have decades of experience and offer a range of landlord services. Contact us today to learn more about our services.
