Should I consider renting to a family who just moved to the US?

[Vinson Lee]

Hi All,

My property is up for rent and I've been getting lots of interest.  One family that is interested just moved to the states from another country.  They really need to rent a place while they are waiting for a new house to be built. They say they just bought a brand new home, but construction will take a year.  They seem like a decent family.  They are willing to have a one year contract.  They are also willing to show bank accounts, but it will be from another country.  The main thing though is that they may be willing to pay for 6 months rent up front or maybe even the full year upfront.  

If I do consider renting to them, is there anything that I need to check?  If they do pay me the full year, does that make them a good tenant?  I feel for their situation and would like to help them out but at the same time don't want to take any more risk than I normally would.  What do you guys think?  What would make you rent to them or not?

Thanks

[Michele Fischer]

Vinson, I'd tread softly.  Especially since the max tenancy is a year, where you could get another tenant who could potentially stay for several years, based on your market.

The very first tenant we placed was from another country, they came to the US to birth their child.  They ended up with medical complications causing them to move out in less than a month.  Causing us to start the process all over.

You will have a harder time verifying anything, from address history to criminal to financial, and they likely don't have long term employment, so they probably couldn't qualify under our point system.

You should check to see what rules your state has for collecting that much rent in advance.  If you did move forward, I would take a really high deposit instead of prepaid rent.