Questions to ask potential section 8 Tenant

[Thomas Gagnon]

Hello everyone, My company has developed our Tenant screening process ver thoroughly and over many years. That said it's been a great learning process and has been successful in the markets we've been in. Recently we purchased a 6 family property in Worcester Ma. The property in combination with the local market has resulted in a very large # of applicants having section 8 subsidies. My company has only had a handful of section 8 tenants apply in the past but have never had any that ended up leasing from us. I'm looking for advice as to what questions should we be asking of section 8 tenants? We have been applying our standard question sets but feel we can do better. I'm looking to see what others ask in terms of programs the tenant is on, details of voucher, waiting/inspection periods or any other pertinent questions? With respect to Tenant's back grounds, pets, rental history, job status etc etc we are always looking to learn but feel that aspect is strung and thorough. When we review Tenant applications that are section 8 subsidized we are struggling to get a good handle on whether a Tenant is financially fit. Any help would really be appreciated!! Thanks

[Patti Robertson]

Here's what I ask before I even decide to show a property to someone with a voucher...

1) Have you already given notice to your current landlord? (If no it is premature for them to even be looking for properties unless it is very close to the last day of the month so they can give a 30 day notice quickly.)

2) Has SEC 8 already reissued you your new landlord packet (RFTA) that you need to submit when you get accepted for your next home?

3) What is the number of bedroom that is printed on your voucher size?

4) How many total people in your household?  (Ask this to confirm the answer to #3 above is correct. Sometimes they fib.)

5) What is your total household monthly income?

6) In your current home, what is the total rent and how much of that are you responsible for paying? (This helps me determine if they have enough income to be accepted for my rent amount.)

7) Have you ever been taken to court by a landlord?  If yes, was this before or after you were accepted into the SEC 8 program?

Once they have been screened, it's pretty much the same as any other tenant, except I ignore their income.  Here are a couple of SEC 8 specific criteria...

1) If their court records or pay stubs show any record of garnishments, be careful because SEC 8 ignore garnishments and the applicant will have trouble paying their portion, just like any other tenant would.

2) If you see an outstanding landlord judgment, call the caseworker to ask when the tenant first was accepted into the program.  If the judgment occured before they got accepted, I ignore it. If it happened after I disqualify.

3) Unlike current HUD law which disallows us to use felony status as a screening tool, SEC 8 removes any recipient holder over the age of 18 who gets a felony. If you see somone with a high level of recent misdemeanor criminal activity their chances of getting a felony is high. If that happens their voucher is immediately terminated and you will receive a 30 day stop payment notice from SEC 8. I am very cautious with these. If the violator is an adult child it's a lower risk because the voucher holder just has appeal and to prove the felon moved to another address to be reinstated. If, however, the felon is the voucher holder, your rent will terminate and if the tenant doesn't leave willingly, you will have to take them to court, just like any other tenant who can no longer pay rent.

That's all I have time for for now.  I'm happy to assist you in testing if you want to contact me off the forum.