Tenant screening - need help

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Tenant screening - need help

Flora Granter
Magnolia, TX · Member since 2016 · 31 posts · 5 votes
We got a tenant application for a 2006 single family house with monthly rent $1425. The applicant has a nice credit score of 702 and monthly income of $5000. Based on tenantsearch check, he has no criminal history and no eviction history. But he is from CA with two recent short-term contract job ( 4-month, 12-month) in Houston. He has two large debt:one $22k for vehicle; the other $20k. He has a credit card debt over $6000. He has two large dogs: 20 lbs French bulldog and 60 lbs pointer. He has a co-applicant who is his finances. She actually lives in California and they have a house there. She has 788 credit score and only has a house payment with monthly mortgage $1400. She has decent income $8000 monthly. I requested his bank statement and was told he is not comfortable with that. But he is willing to show his paystub. I requested increased non-refundable pet deposit due to the pet size from standard $250 to $400. He was not interested in the increased amount. My rental house has been vacant since end of November. I hope to rent to this tenant. But kinda of worries of his debt and his job stability and potential house damage from his large dogs. Please help me whether I should rent to this tenant. Your advice is appreciated. Newbie me wants to know comments and experience.
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Thomas S.
Member since 2016 · 13k+ posts · 12k+ votes
9y

Income and credit are acceptable however everything else raises too many red flags for me personally. I would pass based on his refusal to provide required information, refusal to agree to pay pet deposit, sketchy situation regarding his present residence, uncertain employment and CA connections.

There is simply way too much wrong with this situation to bother wasting your time trying to make this applicant fit. PASS.

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  • Curtis J.
    Investor · Lovington, NM · Member since 2016 · 46 posts · 25 votes
    9y
    Flora Granter That debt wouldn't bother me in least. That still leaves plenty to take care of the bills. Maybe see if he would be comfortable paying the first two or three months to ease your mind. With it being vacant for that long I'd jump on it.
    1Reply
  • Andrew SyriosPro Member
    Moderator
    Residential Real Estate Investor · Kansas City, MO · Member since 2014 · 10k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    9y

    They make $13,000 combined and have great credit with no evictions or felonies. The only issue is the dogs. We don't allow dangerous breeds, but are fine with large dogs. I would be OK with the pets. If you are, unless I'm missing something, their background, despite the debts, sounds good to me.

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    1Reply
  • Flora Granter
    OP
    Magnolia, TX · Member since 2016 · 31 posts · 5 votes
    9y
    Andrew, his current monthly rent is $520. From his address, it seems like a trailer park. She does not seem to live here and her job is in CA. Not sure if I can go after her if he does not make the monthly rent.
    0Reply
  • Marcia Maynard
    Investor · Vancouver, WA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    9y

    Did you establish written rental criteria before putting this on the market? Do they meet your minimum criteria to rent? If yes, rent to them. If no, don't.

    2Reply
  • Flora Granter
    OP
    Magnolia, TX · Member since 2016 · 31 posts · 5 votes
    9y
    Marcia, I did not consider her finance in this application as she is not here. He by himself ha a bit too much debt.
    0Reply
  • Dick Stevens
    Rental Property Investor · Haverhill, MA · Member since 2017 · 290 posts · 185 votes
    9y

    What is his current job?  Is it another short term contract position?  Call his employer and ask.  The fact that he has an out of state fiancé that owns a house tells me he's likely not looking to stay long term.  I'm not interested in short term rentals.  It's a lot of extra work and you will have additional cleaning and repair issues when you need to re-rent due to the two dogs.  If your place has been vacant since November something is wrong.  Are you overpriced?  Bad area? Poor marketing?

    0Reply
  • Thomas S.
    Member since 2016 · 13k+ posts · 12k+ votes
    9y

    Income and credit are acceptable however everything else raises too many red flags for me personally. I would pass based on his refusal to provide required information, refusal to agree to pay pet deposit, sketchy situation regarding his present residence, uncertain employment and CA connections.

    There is simply way too much wrong with this situation to bother wasting your time trying to make this applicant fit. PASS.

    3Reply
  • Susan Kelly
    Real Estate Investor · Cape Coral, FL · Member since 2017 · 8 posts · 3 votes
    9y

    My "Spidey Sense" tells me I wouldn't want him as a tenant.

    2Reply
  • Flora Granter
    OP
    Magnolia, TX · Member since 2016 · 31 posts · 5 votes
    9y
    Dick, the rental house is in a desirable neighborhood with good schools. We bought it just before Thanksgiving. Our area is hit hard by low oil price and there are recent layoffs in the nearby hospitals too. We managed to feature the house in Zillow and we have ~2 showings each week lately. The rentals are slower than last year. It is tough to have the house vacant this long.
    1Reply
  • Flora Granter
    OP
    Magnolia, TX · Member since 2016 · 31 posts · 5 votes
    9y
    John Anderson how do you do screening? I use tenantsearch. I did not check anything other than that.
    1Reply
  • Stephen E.
    St Thomas, Ontario · Member since 2013 · 575 posts · 408 votes
    9y

    @Flora Granter You say he has provided pay stubs but you have not received other information. Do you have pay stubs for his partner? Here I usually ask for proof of income in the form of pay stubs and in summary form from the taxation authorities. You need to be absolutely sure about income being rock solid.

    But there are other issues here. I don't like the dogs, and he doesn't care to put up any money against the prospect of them doing damage to your property. He also has an attitude as to what he will or will not do, and which information he will or will not share, etc. Frankly, most tenants do not do this. They tend to be financially unsophisticated and are in the main compliant. This tenant is signalling to you that he will be a handful. Remember tenants are on their best behavior prior to being approved. This is as good as it gets. I join the chorus - pass on this tenant.

    3Reply
  • Flora Granter
    OP
    Magnolia, TX · Member since 2016 · 31 posts · 5 votes
    9y
    John Anderson thank you. Each time I participate in a discussion, I learn new things. Does it cost anything to do the experian credit check? So in your tenant checks, you do both tenantsearch and experian check, and income verifications with pay stubs etc? I am a newbie as you can tell. Thanks again.
    0Reply
  • Flora Granter
    OP
    Magnolia, TX · Member since 2016 · 31 posts · 5 votes
    9y
    John Anderson I am not aware such a service of checking credit and verifying income. Where to find this type of service? Besides background check and credit/income checks for two applications (him and his fiancé) it seems the total amount easily exceeds the application fee of $50. Hope I learn something from this experience.
    1Reply
  • Neal K.
    New to Real Estate · Bradley, IL · Member since 2016 · 13 posts · 3 votes
    9y
    Haven't used them yet but you can look into Rentprep.com to help with screening? Maybe someone else here has experience with the company?
    0Reply
  • Colleen F.Pro Member
    Investor · Narragansett, RI · Member since 2013 · 8k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    9y

    I am with the tenant on the dog deposit, big dog small dog I don't see the difference, they pee on the floor or chew on the woodwork it doesn't matter what size they are. If you said because it is two that is your policy maybe I could see it then. It is a policy not just an on the spot hike in the deposit.  Bank statements I would only ask if there is insufficient income and they say I have money in the bank to pay the rent but that is me, your policy may be different. To me this guy seems to have sufficient income. He offered his pay stubs so he is trying to meet your needs that he prove that  income. Contract jobs in some industries are the norm. I know people who have done contract work for over 20 years job after job.  Not a red flag to me by itself..   

    You have some discomfort and clearly don't want to rent to them, I think you need to ask yourself why?  Is there some ideal candidate that you are seeking and is that a reasonable expectation? Or is there something in your interactions with them turning you off? do you really not want 2 large dogs, then just say no,  try to put your finger on that item that makes you reject him, is it reasonable, is it legal? For me some people I just skip, can't follow instructions, demanding, negotiators but I know why and it does not violate legal guidelines.  You should set a criteria you tell people and have some back of scene criteria you may not share upfront. 

    You need to fill the vacancy, if not this guy someone else. If you don't want two big dogs advertise you only take small dogs.  Adjust the price,  pull the ad and put it back in a week,  put it with a relator.  

    0Reply
  • Alan Grobmeier
    Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ · Member since 2013 · 919 posts · 911 votes
    9y

    @Flora Granter  There are a couple of ways to mitigate your risk:

    1)  Larger than normal deposit.

    2)  Month to month lease.

    Explain your situation with the tenant.  If they are willing to prove themselves, they will rent from you.  If they are trying to scam you, they won't.

    AG

    0Reply
  • Percy N.
    Developer · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 905 votes
    9y

    Don't forget to call their prior landlord(s) and check to see what kind of tenants they were.

    Personally, I would rent to him (with a decent deposit, plus last months rent and $250 deposit for each dog) and have the fiancee sign as co-signer as a security blanket.

    Ultimately, you need to decide if the slight risk is OK compared to the ongoing vacancy.

    How well does the HUD housing voucher pay in your area? Have you investigated that as an option?

    0Reply
  • Matthew Olszak
    Real Estate Broker · Chicago, IL · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    9y

    @Flora Granter So income, credit, and dogs - he looks good, I'm not worried about those items. I am worried about moving from a $500/mo trailer to something triple that. With a joint income of $13k between the 2, they could buy a trailer in like 2 or 3 months. But, for some people who aren't home much, all they need is a place to sleep/bathe, so the low rent makes sense.

    I'd rent to him, see if you can get her as a guarantor on the lease. They make well more than the monthly rent so you could easily garnish wages if you had to evict. Also, call the employer to make sure the paystubs aren't butchered. For the extra pet deposit, what's $150 extra going to do for you if the dog destroys the place? I'd let that one go.

    0Reply
  • Flora Granter
    OP
    Magnolia, TX · Member since 2016 · 31 posts · 5 votes
    9y
    Matthew Olszak I told my realtor that I would rent to him if he provides his paystub. He said he would and he has not.
    0Reply
  • Matthew Olszak
    Real Estate Broker · Chicago, IL · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    9y

    @Flora Granter That is an issue. Paystubs or proof of deposit should be easy. Investigate the employer further to make sure its not just a friend answering the phone.

    0Reply
  • Ashley Hernandez
    Yuba City, CA · Member since 2017 · 101 posts · 52 votes
    9y
    Flora Granter almost any pay stub can be altered with a computer. Be careful... I would definitely set up specific tenant screening criteria because you can definitely run into fair housing issues. The debt doesn't seem like a big deal especially if he has a decent credit score cause payments could be relatively low.
    0Reply
  • Frank Trigoso
    Investor · Miami, FL · Member since 2016 · 75 posts · 23 votes
    9y

    I will prefer a empty property than a headache. I go by two things; subjective and objective. If it doesn't make me feel good then I won't do the deal. If you can't find the win-win solution, walk away. You hold the cards my friend. 

    1Reply
  • Account Closed
    San Jose, CA · Member since 2015 · 4k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    9y

    Turn him down.  When an applicant says, no I won't give you bank statements, no I won't give you more pet deposit  - just say, well, good luck finding another landlord, then.

    I live in CA and I can tell you that he would have a really hard time finding anyone to rent to him with the big dog, let alone 2 dogs.  They'd at minimum have to pay a larger deposit.  And here, if he could find a landlord willing to even take the dogs, even with a larger deposit, and that landlord then said he also needed bank statements - he'd cough them up.

    I just applied for a subsidized senior place in San Jose and I had to provide 6 months of bank statements, last 3 landlord references, and I even had to get my college transcripts that showed I had graduated, because there are deferred student loans on my credit report.  I graduated in 2003!  (went back to college in my 40's).  You can't be a student to live in these places, and she wanted proof that I had graduated and was no longer a student, after seeing that I had student loans.  Basically, I had to practically give them a sample of my DNA and my first born, to even be considered.

    So, unless he's been a homeowner (and you know what mortgage lenders want, too, as far as documenting everything), he knows that what you are asking for is not out of line.

    Stick to your guns.  Better no tenant and all you're out is rent, than a bad tenant who will also cost you damage and legal fees, etc.

    And really, if you let this guy get you asking "how high" while he's just applying?  God help you if you let him move in.

    2Reply
  • Sam Shueh
    Real Estate Agent · Cupertino, CA · Member since 2016 · 4k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    9y

    I am in Silicon Valley near San Francisco I have two rentals looking for tenants. The last one had about 25 people in and out. Problem was rent asked is about 10% higher. The  owner wanted me to show to all whether qualified or not.

    Based on what you describe I will grab that candidate without hesitation.  I would ask about his saving balance.  

    I have one tenant whom I have signed a contract recently. Self employed, pay mostly cash. She finally shared her from last month after signing the contract. 100+K income shop at most expensive stores. Often pay by cash. Rent late several times at last place. A few % late fee does not bother some since she does not mind paying penalty.  

    The debt is reasonable for Californian.  I will take the guy to have the place filled. The others you interview will often be the bottom of the barrel type.

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  • Sam Shueh
    Real Estate Agent · Cupertino, CA · Member since 2016 · 4k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    9y

    As manager you should know if you can not make a decision quickly he will find a better deal elsewhere.   You either leave it vacant and get sick and tired of showing or have it filled.

    0Reply
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