How to screen a corporate rental?

[Bob H.]

I have a house for rent in Colorado. Today I heard from a lady who works for a small company in Kansas and is "scouting" for herself and about eight families who will be moving from Kansas when the company moves its headquarters to Colorado later this summer.

She said the company is going to rent homes for some of the employees, which I presume is for a limited time. The time frame could fit with my plans for the house, but I don't know how to screen tenants like this. I have never rented to a corporation.

In the usual screening process, I try to verify the applicants' employment information and rental history. I rely on a screening service to produce a credit score or a tenant-screening score. With a corporate employee whose employer is paying the rent, I suppose I still want to make the employee responsible for the rent if the company doesn't pay. I think I want to evaluate the individual's rental history -- at least regarding property damage, pet problems, etc. -- and I want credit information for the company. This doesn't fit the process I've been using.

What do you suggest? Should the employee be on the lease as a tenant with the company as a guarantor, even though the company is the primary payer? How do I get information about the company's credit? Do I also need a credit report on each of the residents? What can go wrong here, aside from the things that can go wrong with a regular rental to a family?