Tenant Screening Process

[Parker Reid]

Good Morning BP members. I am just starting out, I recently purchased a duplex. I plan on doing owner occupied for the first year but I wanted to hear for everyone out there. What are you using to screen your tenants when managing the property yourself. I want to be able to do a background, employment, credit, income, and rental history check. Is there a website out there that is helpful with gathering this type of information? I know for a couple of them I will need to call the employer and previous landlord but for a criminal, income, and credit check what do you all recommend doing? Let me know your thoughts! 

[Nathan Gesner]

Originally posted by @Parker Reid:

Good Morning BP members. I am just starting out, I recently purchased a duplex. I plan on doing owner occupied for the first year but I wanted to hear for everyone out there. What are you using to screen your tenants when managing the property yourself. I want to be able to do a background, employment, credit, income, and rental history check. Is there a website out there that is helpful with gathering this type of information? I know for a couple of them I will need to call the employer and previous landlord but for a criminal, income, and credit check what do you all recommend doing? Let me know your thoughts! 

 Go to www.google.com and search for "Tenant Screening" to get a ton of results. Dig around and find a few that look good, then come on BP and ask people to share their experience or read previous posts about each one. You should be able to find one that allows you to customize the application a little, lets applicants attach documents like picture ID or pay stubs, and that gives you a full report like identity verification, address history (match against what the tenant reports), full credit report with score and activity, criminal history, etc. They should also provide you with an Adverse Action letter for tenants that fail and even advice on how to best use their service.