Great Rental Listing Site and MY LANDLORD MISTAKE

[J. Martin]

Craigslist is the go-to site in the Bay Area for rental listings, so I have always used that as my sole online posting, then some signs at the property, and some around the neighborhood. Only using CL was my mistake!

This time, I added postlets.com, which is a zillow service. They also post to other rental forums.. I've gotten about 1/3 to 1/2 my leads from messages from this service, and perhaps more importantly, they seem to be higher-quality tenants than those generated from Craigslist. (also, more from out of town, which is a dual-edged sword.)

I will use postlets.com from now on also. Free and quick. And more email responses, which I like! I recommend you do it too! Since it posts to Zillow, and they come up top in real-estate & rental related search results, it's a good free bet..

Good luck!

[Marcia Maynard]

@Curtis Bidwell  Happy to share my screening questions.

The 5-minute screening.....

1.  How did you hear about the property?  

2.  What kind of place are you looking for?  What features are important to you?

3.  Why are you looking to move at this time? 

4.  How many people will be living in the residence?

5.  Does anyone smoke?

6.  Do you have any pets or animals?  If yes, what type?

7.  Have you ever been evicted or has a landlord ever asked you to leave?

8.  What is your current monthly income before taxes?

The 30-minute screening.....

Questions in these categories:  Housing Needs, Rental History, Income History, Credit History, Legal History, Miscellaneous.  (I'll share that with you later.... gotta run now to take care of some things at an apartment we are turning over!)