Can I ask potential tenant credit score and house income even before showing house?

[Kevin Kim]

Hey there,

Showing our house to potential tenants is turning out to be quite the task. We often end up finding out their credit score or income doesn't cut it only after we've shown them around, which honestly feels like a bit of a time sink.

So, I was thinking, whenever someone hits us up on Zillow wanting to check out the place, maybe I could just ask upfront if their credit score is over 600 and if they're pulling in more than $6,000 a month. Do you reckon that's cool to ask, or are there some legal hoops to jump through?

Thank you 

[Matt Devincenzo]

You should always be confirming this before a walk through, unless you are doing a group walk through time over a couple hours where the investment is lower than an individual showing. My response to any inquiry is something like:

"Thanks XXX, can you confirm you meet the criteria in the listing? Gross income 2.5X rent ($X,XXX/mo), no evictions, no violent crimes in 5 years, no late payments in the last 12 months."

My criteria here in Socal are different than when I had rentals in FL, but the point is the same. You want them to confirm they meet those criteria or its a waste of your time, it also helps if you later deny for one of those items.

In FL I had a guy who confirmed my criteria and then was upset when I denied for a criminal issue in the background check...because he plead 'no contest'. If he had lead with that when I asked we could have discussed, instead he wanted to argue semantics with me. Guess who I would never want to rent to...the guy who wants to argue with his prospective LL. I simply pointed him back to his confirming the criteria and failing to bring it up then if he had any question on what I expected.