Would you accept this applicant?

Question

I just finished renovating my first property and have had a few applicants. I am on the fence with this one and would like the community's input.

The tenant needs to move ASAP due to fleeing an abusive relationship (needing to move ASAP is a huge red flag).

She earns $3000 / mo as a stripper and receives about $6,000 in education loans every 6 months (in year 1 of 4 for education). I have verified income with bank statements, she doesn't have paystubs because its a cash business. She also doesn't file taxes for some reason. Her employer wrote an employment verification letter too stating she makes on average $3500 / mo.

Credit Score: 731 - two 30 Days Late marks on her credit from a few years back

Debt: $63,476 - Revolving $139 / mo, Installment: $1,227 / mo - 2 car loans make up the bulk of this.

She has never been evicted or arrested. I'll be calling former landlords and prior employers tomorrow.

I'm on the fence because she needs to move ASAP and her earnings are all cash and hard to verify. Having a debt load of $1350 / mo and rent of $900 only leaves $750 - $1250 for everything else. She has a good credit score and legal history and has been a multiyear tenant at her other residents. Assuming her references check out, if she were applying to your property, would you accept or reject her based on the above information?

Greg M. · Answer

Based on the info you provided, I'd likely rent to her. Her income, even if it is in cash, you appear to have verified via employer and bank statements. It is over 3X rent so that is good. Her revolving credit balance is low, so she isn't a big borrower/spender. Two car loans is OK and perhaps one of those loans goes away when the abusive boyfriend goes away? Credit score is pretty good. I pass no judgment on her being a stripper. It's a legit job and for the most part those type jobs continue to pay well even when the economy gets bad. The only worry for me is no tax returns. However, this is likely a small concern. Perhaps ask for a bigger downpayment to help offset the risk.Make sure you put in your lease how you want the rent to be paid, otherwise expect to receive nine hundred $1 bills every month. 😜

Mary M. · Answer

Yes

Ana Marie B. · Answer

@Jacob G. - Sorry for what you went through. Wish I saw this post earlier, as I would have voted to “reject” based on the details you provided. One major red flag is any applicant stating they need to move in “ASAP.”

Jacob G. · Answer

An update / closure on this post.I decided to move forward with renting to this applicant as she met all my criteria (3x rent, no evictions, no criminal history, good references, decent credit, etc.). She was great for all of two weeks, and then decided to adopt a five year old high-risk pet dog and didn't notify me of such (she was going to register it as an ESA, then tell me). Fast forward two weeks after getting the dog, I got a call from the neighbor that the tenant's dog charged her and then proceeded to attack her small dog. The tenant decided to flee when the cops / animal control were called. What then ensued was quiet the show, the tenant and neighbor attempted to make me the liaison between them until one asked for the other's number. They then decided to add me to their group text message and volley attacks at one another off and on until about 7am. I didn't respond to any of these attacks as it was a neighbor / tenant dispute at this time, and a tenant / landlord lease violation.The tenant and I had a discussion, the dog was not permitted back on the property and her options were (1) get rid of the dog permanently and stay at the property, or (2) mutually terminate the lease and find a place that will welcome her high-risk breed. She chose to terminate the lease because the "neighbor was being mean to her." She officially turned the house back to me on 4/5. Both dogs ended up being okay. The neighbor's dog had a $700 vet bill, and the tenant's dog was put up for adoption.Lessons Learned:1) I should have known about the dog sooner, preferably after it was moved in. I believe I should have texted the neighbor 2 or 3 weeks after the tenant moved in and just asked how things were going. This might have opened dialogue to let me know there was a high-risk dog there that charged the neighbor on multiple occasions. I had been to the property two times (gave 24 hour notice), but the tenant had always removed the dog prior to my arrival and hid all the dog's stuff. 2) Call the authorities to get the "official" story. I talked with the Animal Control Officer and he said neither the tenant or the neighbor's stories matched, so he elected to have each dog quarantined in their owner's home for 10 days. The tenant opted to turn the dog over to the ARL because I told her the pet was not allowed back on the property. The officer also confirmed the dog looked like a pitbull.3) Know when it might be in your best interest to let a tenant out of the lease early. I think I made the right call by letting her out of the lease two months in without a penalty. Hearing she wanted to keep the dog, the Animal Control Officer wanted to release the dog back to her, and the fact children live next door, I felt it was best if she moved from the property before paying the registration fee to an online ESA outfit and bringing the dog back onto the property. My fear was I would get roped into a lawsuit if she brought the dog back and it attacked one of the neighbor's children, or continued to cause issues with the neighbor. The kicker was she was late on rent for March because she spent a bunch of money adopting the dog.

John Teachout · Answer

I would accept her in a an sfr but not a multi-family. Trouble seems to follow people in this profession. There's a number of people on this site that have rented to strippers in the past and the person joking about getting paid in 1 dollar bills wasn't far off as it seems I remember someone relating that.I too would be concerned about the lack of tax returns. It takes the IRS a long time to catch up with people sometimes but when they do, it likely would cause a vacancy.The main question here is do you have an established criteria for vetting tenants and if so, does she meet the requirements?

Jacob G. · Answer

Thanks for the replies everyone! @Greg M. I would probably laugh if that happened once, but then it would get old. I decided to utilize Cozy to collect rent, so hopefully it wont happen at all. I'll ask for a larger deposit to mitigate some of the risk. @Eric Mayer It is a legal profession and the actual job doesn't bother me, verifying the income is challenging because all you can see are a bunch of cash deposits for $100 - $600. She said the establishment was conservative on the employment verification letter in regards to her earnings. @Lynnette E. Great idea on talking to her former landlords about the number of guests / others. She has been living in the townhome with her significant other for 2 years. She was granted a "Relief from Domestic Abuse" order against a different person 7 years ago according to the court records. Nothing filed against the current significant other. I'll definitely put a lease addendum on there that the abusive person is not allowed on the premises. She already knows anyone staying for more than 1 consecutive week, or 14 days in a calendar year, would need to fill out an application, pass the screening process, and be added to the lease. @Bjorn Ahlblad Thanks for the input. I definitely want to avoid as many landlord adventures as possible.

Eric Mayer · Answer

Tapped twice.

Eric Mayer · Answer

I thought most strippers made more than that? With no evictions, no arrests, and steady income I would probably accept her. It’s a legal job so who are we to judge? Just make very clear the abusive ex is not welcome on your property.

Lynnette E. · Answer

I would want more information about the abusive relationship type of a situation from past landlords. I would ask them is she lived there alone, had others in the home. Same "other" for the time there or constant flow of "others". History of violence, destruction. And I would ask her if she was married, separated, etc. If married, often the relationship gets put back together through counseling or whatever and the abusive relationship continues in your home. Is she ok with a lease requirement that abusive person is not allowed on the property?If there is not a history of these issues, I would take her but be pretty strict about anyone staying over 2 nights a month needs to be approved in writing before the third night happens. OR whatever requirements you have.

Bjorn Ahlblad · Answer

@Jacob G.I would not rent to her, I like my tenants to be regular folk. I don't want any "adventure in land lording".