A few questions about tenant application/screening - opinions preferred!

[Lane S.]

I've been looking at a lot of stuff about handling the application/screening process with potential renters lately. There seem to be a lot of different styles, strategies, and utilities to make the whole thing as painless as possible, and it made me curious as to how you folks handled it.

1. What's your application/screening process for potential renters like? Are there any particular tools you couldn't live without?
2. Do you use a property manager? How heavily are they involved in the process? Has it ever burned you?
3. What are the "gotchas" you've experienced? What are the things you'd never have thought of in a million years, until they happened to you?
4. What's the most irritating or time-consuming part of the process?
5. If you do use any special tools, where do they fall short?

Any other comments and thoughts are welcome, of course!

[George P.]

i use a tool that not everyone has. it's called "common sense". it's custom made years ago.

i require a lot of stuff and look at it all. i ask questions and listen. and i listen. and i observe their body language, their interactions, their kids, etc, etc. i look at income, i look at bills, i look at bank accounts.

that's it, really..