Getting Prior Landlord Reference

[Ray Harrell]

I was thinking, has anyone ever called a previous landlord and gotten a glowing reference, only to find out they gave u a friend's number, OR WORSE, the previous landlord gave u a glowing reference to get rid of them?

Two ideas I thought of. Ask for the landlord prior to the current landlord, and stress that you will be verifying ownership by checking the tax record. 

Landlords with no more stake are likely to give u the truth since they have gotten rid of the problem, and by telling tenants AFTER u get their previous prior address that you are checking tax records will eliminate them giving you a friend's number. 

Any thoughts?