http://westhillpropertymanagement.com/tenant-screenin/


The inexperienced investor will take any interested applicant for their investment property, get a signed rental lease, collect first month's rent and then release the keys to the new tenant. This is a bad idea! No matter what the applicant states on the application, it is imperative the information is verified and other steps are completed to ensure you are finding the most qualified applicant for the investment property.

Once you receive the rental application, the tenant screening process begins:

* Complete Credit Check
* Complete Criminal Background Check
* Employment Verification
* Income Verification
* Rental Verification

Now that you have processed the application, it's time to schedule an interview with the applicant to ensure all the information that was obtained was accurate and to explain what the potential tenant can expect from the landlord and what is expected of them. Once the interview is complete, a scoring system should be used to determine if the applicant is approved, approved with higher deposit or denied.

The reason a landlord or property manager should use a scoring system is to show consistency in the tenant screening process. If an applicant felt they were discriminated against and filed a complaint with fair housing, a landlord or property manager would be able to show they approve or deny applicants based on a scoring system.

If you need any assistance in the tenant screening process, have any questions about the tenant screening process or require the services of a West Hill Property Manager, feel free to complete our contact form.

If you are looking for a good local screening company we recommend Rental Research Inc out ot Federal Way. They have an Express Report which gives you credit decision, crimanal and eviction report for $35. They usually get the reports done within a few minutes.