Accept a Tenant with a criminal past?

Question

I have my place listed and I had a guy apply who told me upfront when we met that he has a past, he is on the right path now and trying to rebuild his life.

Very polite, has excellent credit (somehow), very responsive, has submitted landlord references and paystubs to prove his income which shows he has the funds to afford the property.

When I dug in a little further about his “past” I found he was arrested about 12 years ago for raping a drunk woman with a knife, and then trying to hire a hit man to kill her when she went to the police. He was only 19 at the time.

He was in jail for the last 12 years or so and is now on parole. Another thing is Zillow didn’t find any of this on their application background check. That’s another story.

What would you do? Should I look at his attempt to clean up his life as a benefit. Maybe he will be a low laying tenant who works hard to keep his place and stay away from prison. Or do I run for the hills?

JD Martin · Answer

Frankly, I can't even quite understand what he's doing walking around right now - the only place he should be renting is a rack in the local prison. That's a pretty sorry sentence for those types of crimes. The guy's not an opportunist, he's a major predator. Virtually guarantee he ends up back in the criminal system - sex criminals (real sex criminals, not an 18 year old guy with his 17 year old girlfriend) are almost completely impossible to rehabilitate.

Eliott Elias · Answer

I wouldn't. Too many qualified people out there to compromise. I have tried to give people second chances, they just prove to me why I am an idiot. Don't be the landlord who gives second chances

Malkia Ra · Answer

Something to keep in mind... if you're renting a unit within a building, have women tenants and you decide to give this guy a chance, this could possibly be problematic in the future if any of those tenants (or even neighbors) check his background and uncover the same info you did. His "past" is just as damaging to his reputation as someone who's a convicted sex offender.

Just something to think about.

Alicia Marks · Answer

Violent crimes and sex crimes are always going to be a no go for me. I have a property manager, but have self managed. As a small woman who still doesn't carry (much to my dad's frustration), I have to feel comfortable being on my own property. I also invest heavily in a small suburb and don't want my name associated with something that doesn't represent me or the kind of business I run. I am open to second chances in many cases, but that's not one I am comfortable with myself.

Tom Fidrych · Answer

No way. I've done some stupid thing when I was 19 but "hiring a hit man to kill some someone" implies deep seated issues. I'm not sure 12 years of "reform" will make a difference.

Clayton Boyle · Answer

Absolutely not. That's not a 'youthful indiscretion' but a series of awful decisions. The reason he is very responsive and polite is that he has to be in order to rent a place from any reasonable individual. It's a survival tactic out in the society, and to keep himself compliant with parole. I really wouldn't want to invite this into my life.

Bruce Woodruff · Answer

I understand about helping someone restart their life. But this particular offense wouldn't work for me...he's one bad day and a few drinks from slipping over that edge again. This is not a simple shoplifting or petty theft, this is about as bad as it gets.

Are there no other tenants in your area?

John Morgan · Answer

@Vincent Plant

My best tenants have major red flags like this. They will stay with me for many years/decades because nobody else will take them. And I’ve enjoyed having them all and getting to know them. I’m ok giving someone a second chance. One of mine murdered someone and I’ve got a couple others with felonies and time in prison. People change and I wasn’t perfect in my past either. I’ve seen miracles in the lives of people who now give themselves to the Lord. Not get preachy. Lol.

And I’ve had Zillow miss a criminal background check on one applicant who told me she had a felony ahead of time. Her criminal background check came back clean! Hmmm. lol. But the offense was greater than 7 years prior so maybe Zillow doesn’t go back more than 7 years?

Ben V. · Answer

I wouldn't say that he has had time to show that he is making an attempt to clean up his life. From the sounds of it he's been in prison for 12 years and only recently got out. Prison isn't an attempt to clean up, it's forced, against his will. Over the next couple of years he can show that he is cleaning up but that time hasn't come yet.

In this case, the hills sound safe and reassuring if you catch my drift.

Cliff H. · Answer

@Vincent Plant I hope this is a joke because otherwise that’s a hella lotta life-turning-around geolocation-of-Jesus or whatever else you want to call it that someone with that kind of history and connections would need to do in order to not put your life in danger as well.

Accept a Tenant with a criminal past?

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