New member: First Post -- Best way to find potential tenants

[Noah Lawler]

I am just south of Birmingham (about 20 minutes) and just closed on a property that I will rehabbing and also house hacking in the process of doing so. 

I am actually not from the Birmingham area and do not have many strong connections regarding potential tenants so I am hoping I can lean on some of the BP community to maybe point me in the right direction or maybe even providing me with a potential tenant!

I am open to any discussion and would love any advice!

[Maureen McCann]

Noah...Congrats on your first investment property! Welcome to the game of investment real estate. 

Some tips on screening prospective residents

1. Pull their credit. Don't just look at the credit score, comb the credit report to look for any unpaid utility bills possibly trailing them from previous rentals. Look at their last 3 years of credit card payment history and look for any late pays or missed pays. 

2. The total household monthly income needs to be 3x the rent to ensure they can afford the rent. 

3. Verify income, verify identity, verify employment.

4. Check with 2 previous PM Co for references 

5. Pull criminal history in all 50 states. Felonies are an automatic disqualification. 

Remember that the data an applicant enters on their rental application needs to be verified.  Do not trust what they wrote down without thoroughly checking into their background. 

Hope this was helpful and Good Luck!