Which tenant application would you pick?

Question

I'm in my mid 30s and I'm house hacking my way through this. Because I'm single, I've been buying houses, moving into one of the bedrooms and renting out the other rooms. I have 2 applicants interested in renting out the master bedroom:

Option A:

49 Yr old, taking a job transfer to Utah, Income is 15x rent. Owns his own house in the state he is moving from. Excellent Credit. No criminal history. Planning to live there for at least 3 months, probably going to move somewhere else after he's settled into the area a little bit. I haven't met him yet. He won't be here until he moves to Utah.

Option B:

27 Yr old, Self Employed, Income is 5X rent. Bad credit due to some medical bills (Willing to put down 2x the my standard deposit). Misdemeanor Attempted Aggravated Assault 2 years ago.  Looking to live here for quite a while. He seems like a nice guy when I met him.

If Option A were going to stay a long time I think it would be a no brainer, pick A. But if he moves out in just a few months vs a tenant who's ready to stay a while I'm tempted to go the Option B route. What do you think?

James Wise · Answer

Neither.

Option A: Wouldn't want a 3 month tenant unless they were willing to pay more than the normal amount of rent. Even then doesn't really entice me.

Option B: Bad credit and assault.

Marcia Maynard · Answer

Option B may be fine and because of his legal record and credit history, he may have fewer options, so would be more likely to stay long term. Check out the legal history thoroughly. An assault charge may be a deal breaker for you or not, depending on the circumstances. Since it was a misdemeanor and only attempted, I would not be as concerned. How is he remedying his debt situation? Is he on a payment plan with his creditors? Self employment requires extra checking too, such as looking at his tax returns for the most recent two years. Is his work steady and dependable? Is his business a trade or professional line of work? Does he work out of the home or does he go elsewhere to do his work? That would make a difference.

Option A would likely be very short term as he would have more options available to him. In that case you would be starting your search again very soon. How soon could you meet him? I would not consider any applicant who I have not personally met, especially in a house share situation. However if you did meet him and he checked out as clean as he has presented, then you could offer him short-term housing at a higher price than you had originally thought. This would compensate you for the loss you will take when you need to turnover the room again.

But ultimately, there are other factors you must consider. You will be sharing housing, so how well do you think you will get along with them? Will your personalities clash or jive? Are their living habits to your liking or not? Do they come with other factors, such as pets or partners? Are they home bodies who will root or minimalists just looking for a crash pad? Did you check personal references? Do they bring any extra talents that would enhance your home and living experience?

Kim Smith · Answer

I will go with option A. Because it is depending on real situation.

Chris Bingham · Answer

Thanks for the input. Just to give you a review of my decision. I went with A. I guess one thing I didn't list out in my initial post is that I was about to leave the country from the middle of October on. I wanted to have someone lined up before I left so that I didn't just lose money while I was away due to the empty space. I hate trying to fill rooms in Nov, Dec, and Jan. They always seem to be the hardest times to locate great tenants.

Anyway, Option B was disappointed when I told him he wasn't being selected and offered to pay more than the asking price to try and move into the place. He later got kinda rude/(I kinda interpret it as him trying to be manipulative) and said that if I let him move in that he would be willing to overlook the fact that I had turned him down in the first place.

Option A probably wont last that long, but now that I'm back in the country I can continue to vet potential tenants to replace him when he moves out. In the meantime Option A has paid me over $1000 already.

Bradley Linnell · Answer

Have you requested a copy of the assault arrest?  If you go with option B, you want to make sure that he doesn't repeat the bad behavior.  You might also want some additional "outs" in your standard rental contract.

DeVon Zumbrennen · Answer

Chris,

I'm with @Jack Aduwo.  In the Utah rental market, your phone should be ringing off the hook.  The vacancy rate is tight, less than 2.7 percent in Salt Lake County right now.  I would either take Option A or wait for Option C.  Good luck!

Jack Aduwo · Answer

Hey @Chris Bingham

Here is my reply..... both are bad deals. You can certainly you can get better options than those two. I have never accepted or offered anything less than one year term on all my leases. I have never done house hacking but i am assuming the expectation is the same. Take more time and go on the offence and try get another great tenant. I am sure there are tons of other great tenants. I am guessing you're using postlets.com and craigslist.com to list the house, if you're not using both then you need to get on it right away and actively use both. Remember to have an attractive listing with great pictures and as long as you price it right, your phone should ringing be off the hook. With you living in Sandy Utah, i am sure you have a big pool of potential wonderful tenants, so hit the reset button and don't settle for anything less .............Cheers and good luck

Michaela G. · Answer

I would say Option A sounds better than Option B, but it depends on the actual situation of assault.

Also, you don't mention how quickly either one wants to move in. If A is only moving in after transfer and that may only happen in a couple of months, that would qualify him in my eyes.

Steve Smith · Answer

@Chris Bingham

As posted :Option B:

27 Yr old, Self Employed, Income is 5X rent. Bad credit due to some medical bills (Willing to put down 2x the my standard deposit). Misdemeanor Attempted Aggravated Assault 2 years ago.

The last line said it all  option "B" gone

In my opinion option "A" is questionable but possible

Helen Rolls · Answer

Hi Chris. House sharing can be an interesting process. I've been doing it for ten years and I have definitely had some highs and lows. How much do you know about Option A? Has he house shared before? Have you checked out their references? How hard are you finding it to get people who are interested? If you are in this much analysis paralysis are you better of waiting for Option C?

Which tenant application would you pick?

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