International Tenant Screening

[Lisa Winklepleck]

I currently invest in rental properties in a small Midwest college town. I'm close friends with the local college women's soccer coach and am looking to rent to a few of his players soon. Several of them, however, are international students. Typically I'd require social security numbers, background checks, etc. but with them being international, what can I do to make sure they're quality tenants? I typically have parents co-sign on a lease too, but if they're not located in the US, does it still make sense to do this? Has anyone else had experience with this and what other due diligence do I need to do to protect myself?