Should I rent to an unmarried couple where only one works?

Question

The couple claims to be married and the wife says she's been a SAHM for 10 years but a quick internet search shows them having seperate addresses 2 years ago.  I'm concerned that if the kids are hers, they're really not married and she has no income, then he could leave without any financial obligation to her and I'd be stuck with a family I'd have to evict.  He makes enough money and they both claim to have no credit problems and excellent references.  Thoughts?  I haven't done a credit or background check yet - would like to decide whether to accept this kind of situation before I do that.  This is our only rental and it's recently renovated in a medium sized town so the rental market isn't super active right now.  Thanks for any insight from more experienced landlords

Ricardo R. · Answer

@Dennis Adams the only 2 questions you need to focus on are:

Do they have the ability to pay rent?

Do they have the willingness to pay rent?

Anything else i.e. are they married, do they have kids, do I like them, etc. etc. is only opening you up to a world of hurt and can quite possibly be a fair housing violation case. Read up on fair housing and other similar items or hire a property manager.

Sheri Dell · Answer

Fair housing issues crossed my mind as well.  Is it really any of your business? Couldn't the same thing happen if they are married?

Ned Carey · Answer

You can't consider whether they are married of if they have kids. That is a clear fair housing violation.

Nathan Gesner · Answer

Your lease should include a "joint and several liability" clause that says all named Tenants are 100% responsible for the terms and conditions. They don't escape that responsibility by moving out.

Michael Smythe · Answer

You asked a question, several responders told you what you want to do is a Fair Housing violation, yet you persist.

Here's a link you NEED to follow and read about Fair Housing laws:

https://www.hud.gov/program_of...

Now what's your excuse for not educating yourself?

Colleen F. · Answer

@Dennis Adams the couple claims to be married so because they had separate addresses two years ago they are not?  Is there some sense you get of these two that makes you think they are deceitful in general?  You could run the check and ask them about the separate addresses.  The relevant point is are they being straight with you and will they pay. If people lie about 1 thing you might see them lie about a others but this isn't necessarily a lie, you can sometimes have a different address than your spouse. (Relocations, military). It could even be a relative.

In any case you are protected if the lease says something like they are jointly and severly liable for the rent. Make them both sign, who knows who has assets at the end of the day.

Doug Spence · Answer

@Dennis Adams Time to hire a property manager. Let them do the screening (they won't violate any federal housing regulations if they're good), and if it ever comes to an eviction, let them be the bad guy!

Good luck and let us know what you decide to do.

Ned J. · Answer

Its a valid concern..... if it were just two roommates and one didn't have a job and wouldn't be able to pay the rent if the other one bailed, would you rent to them? Probably not....

BUT... its a protected class...so you can't alter your criteria for renting to them..so stick to the law

Erin Church · Answer

Hey Dennis,

I mean this seriously and with kindness - you may want to hire a property manager. If you cannot evict a family, you should not be a landlord. I'm not saying that you look forward to it or hope for it, but you've got to be capable of doing it. Otherwise, someone decided that you'd be a charity for them. You may be in a financially different situation than me, but I'm not in a place where I can pay for housing for strangers indefinitely.

You will want everyone on the lease. If you leave her off the lease, you could potentially have a squatter if the person on the lease leaves.

As everyone else has said, their kids and marital status aren't your concern. Their credit scores, income, and references are. The two addresses are important if you're checking landlord references, but not as a way to dig into their status.

Having a property manager will take the liability off of you and prevent you from having to do any of the "unsavory" parts of managing property. There is no shame in having someone else manage the property for you. Having rentals is an amazing accomplishment and that is not undermined by having someone else manage. When a person owns a house, that isn't any less awesome if they hire someone to cut the grass or clean the bathrooms or paint the walls. :)

Should I rent to an unmarried couple where only one works?

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