if a new immigrant could not produce a ss card, I'd be leary

@Max Tanenbaum I'd worry about this. Who is the tenant who needs a co-signer? And if the co-signer just moved here, they won't have any credit you can verify anyway, so they'd be useless as a co-signer. So, you'd have an iffy tenant with an iffy co-signer. I just don't think that's a good idea.

If only there were a government form you could fill out that would do this...Oh wait, there's not one but TWO forms you could fill out. If you're a landlord and didn't purchase all-cash, you're already familiar with BOTH of these forms!The SSA-89 process is a bit of a pain for a smalltime landlord to deal with.But the IRS form 4506-T process is fairly easy, with instructions right on it, and you verify the integrity of the tax returns they provided to boot. Just ensure you TYPE IN the information from the tax returns EXACTLY PERFECTLY, including "Drive" versus "drive" versus "Dr" versus "Dr.", and so on.

i have copies of the SS card. Names match up with drivers license and application. Thanks!

Agreed. (In fact, no one should be carrying around their SS card on a regular basis.) But if the credit check flags a SS number as being possibly invalid (something I have also seen when screening tenants), there's really no other good way to verify it short of putting your eyes on the actual SS card. Bottom line, if an applicant's SS number gets flagged as possibly being invalid and the applicant can't produce the card to verify it, then you shouldn't be accepting them.

@Kyle J. I guess not too many people carry the SS card or even know where they place it nowaday with all the technology. If it is a requirement for every showing, the tenant demand might be really slim. The credit report consistency sound more promising.

If you pull credit reports from the major reporting companies, they will flag any inconsistencies, including prior addresses. Both are very useful in screening.

@Kyle J. That's exactly what I'm doing. Thanks.

The easiest/best way would be to view the actual SS card and verify the number printed on the card is the same as what you were given and the name matches their driver's license.

Simply tell the co-signer there is a problem with his SS# and until he can get it resolved you will not be able to use him as a co-signer for the applicant. Move on to another applicant, ideally one that can qualify on their own.

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Max T.Poster

Investor
Philadelphia, PA

General Landlording & Rental Properties

How to verify SS #

Max T.Poster

Investor
Philadelphia, PA

Posted August 19, 2016 04:42

So I have a cosigner's SS number from his paper application. I also had him complete a background check through mysmartmove. The smartmove report indicates that I should verify his SS # because it may be invalid.

What is the best/fastest/cheapest way to do this?

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