Screening tenants remotely

[Jacquelyn First]

It’ll cost me either $300 flying to visit my new investment property or 14 hrs of driving total. Usually it is not this bad and flights are cheap and my property is by family so I can visit them (so not looking for “you should have bought locally arguments here” - I live in the bay and am too broke for that!)

It is time to screen tenants and so I feel the need to be there in person doing this for a couple weeks (I don’t know if it takes that long) but this doesn’t seem sustainable. Has anyone screened tenants themselves virtually and then hired someone to show them the home? Wondering if that can be helpful or if I need to just get a rental management company. I’m wary to go with a company because I’d like to screen the tenant personally and it seems more costly?

Thanks!