Screening Tenants: Checking their Gross Income

[Jonathan Feliciano]

In @Brandon Turner's The Book On Rental Property Investing, one criterion he uses for screening tenants is that "their gross monthly income must be approximately three times or more the monthly rent."

I would like to ask the BP community if they have a similar requirement for screening tenants? 

If so, do you use the same number as Turner (three times), or do you use a different number? 

Why did you choose that number? 

Has this screening requirement helped you find better tenants? 

On a side note, what do you do when you rent out your property in a community where the tenants may not meet that requirement? For example, I would like to buy and rent a property near a university, but most college students may not be able to meet the three times requirement. However, some of them may have their parents pay their monthly rent. What do you do in a situation like this?