Suggestions? How to screen tenants if realtor shows house

[Rachel A.]

Rookie question...We just completed a cosmetic rehab on our first house and placed it for rent this week. I plan to self-manage, so I had hoped to show the house myself and personally meet any potential tenants. From just a yard sign and Zillow, I actually got a fair number of inquiries. For safety reasons and to make sure they qualified, I would send a link to the free application offered by erentpayment. I have received zero applications back. My realtor posted it on MLS, which increased my inquiries from individuals. Again, no applications received. A fellow landlord friend of mine, said that I probably won't get any because no one is going to fill out an application (even a simple one) before seeing the house. (We're in San Antonio, so there is an abundance of available rentals.)

Now I have a couple of realtors interested in showing it. I only get a text/phone call from the showing service asking to confirm that the house is available at a certain time. This completely cuts me out of the process of meeting the tenants and puts a lot of trust in a realtor that I have never met. Plus they are working on the behalf of their client, not me. I think actually meeting the person is critical before offering a contract, especially if I am going to manage the property myself.

Is there an intermediate step I can take, so that I'm not cut out of the loop of selecting MY tenant? My application and credit/background check are all online, so showing the house was my opportunity to get to know the tenant and look out for red flags.