Unique Situation: Screen This Tenant

[Dan Shelhamer]

So I am filling a vacancy right now, and a potential tenant reached out through Zillow to get more information. Well, it turns out I actually work with this person at my full time job. She is a customer service rep, very hard working, and has worked here for 12 years.

The situation:

• She and her husband make plenty of money to cover the rent.They make about $100,000 combined ($47,700/annual would be 3x rental amount). She has 12 years with our company, and he works a Union job for the last 10 years.
• They have currently been renting the same house for 10 years at $1,500/month, but their landlord just gave them 60 day notice that he is selling the property. My rental would be $1,325/month so definitely more affordable for them.
• She has also offered to pay rent every pay period (every 2 weeks).
• Their credit isn't good but she said they have been working on it. She has a 502 and he has a 574.
• Her criminal record is clean. However, he has was found guilty of a felony, burglary (no possession of a weapon), in 2009. It looks like he served 6 months of periodic imprisonment.

I am all for 2nd chances, especially being that this was 9 years ago.How would you all approach this?

[Ned J.]

Gonna pass too.....mostly on the fact that they are a co-worker......and one with some fair but not horrible red flags is the icing on the cake. Renting to family/friends/co-workers can be very very risky. When it comes time to make real business decisions, the relationship makes you do stupid stuff. Before you know it, they are asking for favors on late rent....call you to fix stuff..... etc etc.....When you have to be a real landlord, do you really want to be running into them every day?