application information verification

[Thomas Hallensleben]

I am new to the landlord business and am unsure as to what I can legally ask former landlords and employers.  My property is in Kansas City, MO and I need to verify income.  Is that something I can legally ask the employer, or do I need pay stubs from the applicant?  

The applicant also has several accounts on his credit report showing up as "charge off or collection" with the amounts disputed by the consumer.  Clearly that is NOT a good sign!?  

Am I legally permitted to call the accounts listed on the credit report to find out more about what is going on there?

I have also read some of the forums here already and learned that it is necessary to verify that a listed landlord is indeed the owner of the property.  So I did that and found that the landlord was accurate, but the rent listed by the applicant is much higher than what the landlord told me.  According to many of you all, that (lying on the application) is an automatic disqualifyer.

I am desperate to rent this and get it off the books, but this is beginning to seem like too many red flags, isn't it???

Thank you for your help!

Thomas

[Justin Rollheiser]

Welcome Thomas!

@Dawn Anastasi makes great points!  I typically ask for pay stubs and I have a release on my application that authorizes employers and landlords to give me the necessary information.  Some won't provide much information even with the release, but everything you can get helps.  I would also add that you really need a standard set of criteria for all tenants (not just for income, but credit score, debt-to-income, rental history, etc).  This protects you from discrimination claims.

Criminal History

I always run a national background check through an online service.  

Eviction Hisory

You can check Jackson County court records here.

Johnson County, KS has the same information here

I always ask for at least the last 2 landlords' contact info.  I always call both, but I assume the previous landlord is a more reliable source than the current landlord (the current landlord could be trying to pass his/her problem tenant to you).  By the way, I usually check that the landlord's name and contact information matches the owner of record for the property.

Hope this helps!  Best of luck!!

Justin Rollheiser