There are some sites which help landlords determine if a potential renter is a suitable candidate for their property. But these sites charge a fee for that service, which to be honest, you might not find all that valuable since the only names in their database are those submitted to the site by angry landlords. Your thoughts? Are such sites helpful or would forking out $30 or so bucks be a waste of money?
My view on finding if the potential tenant will be a good one is gut feel. And, of course, you also have to ask some questions even if you don't expect an honest answer. The usual question is why would you rent and the usual answer is because they want to move on from their parents or from their roommate. Maybe the character of the person can be somehow determined when you are talking to them and their sincerity can be felt in their answers.
We use the credit and background checks as our standard for renting to someone. Coupled with a tight eviction process and adequate fees for late payment this seems to work well for us. Yes, if we have to evict then the money for the service may or may not have been worth it and if they are habitually late with their rent the late fees make up for these hassles, in the end though, I have not ever once thought that I have needed such a service.
While I think that credit and background checks can be helpful, I also think you have to judge each individual that wants to rent on their character aswell. Just because somebody might have bad credit for example, doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to cause problems for you, and finding out why they have a bad credit can often shed new light in things. One person I was wary of renting to had a bad credit history and couldn't provide a reference from his previous landlord, so as you can imagine I wasn't going to take the risk. It was only after meeting him face to face, and he explained what his situation was that it became clearer. He had just been divorced and he had been left with all his ex wife's debts, aswell as his own, so that explained the poor credit rating. He was also a home owner and when the divorce came through, he lost his home and so his mortgage provide wasn't prepared to give a reference, as the mortgage was transferred over to his ex wife. He was a decent guy, honest and open with all the questions I asked, he provided bank statement showing he had a regular income every month and so I took the risk. And he was probably the best tenant I've ever had.
Well in my area, we don't have sites, rather, word of mouth, if a landlord is annoyed and ejects a tenant because of foul behavior, then, that story will spread like a wildfire and that is how a tenant faces the wrath of a landlord who has been scorned.
I agree in determining the character. It's not much of the capacity to rent but the willingness. There are tenants who are like hermits whom you cannot disturb, they always point to their privacy as their main concern. And there are some tenants who are amiable and sociable such that their honesty and integrity cannot be questioned. We were also the quiet type when we were in the apartment but we try to be sociable at times particularly during occasions. And sharing with the neighbors was our trademark.
I don't know if these sites will be effective all the time and if an individual desires to rent your apartment, house etc., this site might just not have information about that individual. I think it's best to do your own background check. When some employers are seeking new employees, they sometimes ask the reason for leaving the previous job and may correspond with the previous employer. The same method could be employed when choosing new tenants by asking about the previous rental situation, if applicable, and maybe even correspond with the previous landlord/lady to effectively assess this prospective tenant. Do as much other necessary background check before making a decision.
I think landlords should be able to use good enough judgment to know who to rent to or not rent to. It's silly to pay $30 when you could find that information for free as well.
I think that there are other ways of knowing your possible tenant other than paying $30 for information that might not even be that useful at all. As what the others have mentioned, it is best if you do your background check yourself like asking for phone numbers of reference persons that could help you know your possible tenant well. If he/she has rented before and it wouldn't be a hassle for him/her to provide his/her former landlord's phone number then I think it's a good way for you to determine his/her relationship with the former landlord.
One landlord I know who owns many condo units that she rents out is safety conscious when it comes to rental. Her reason for renting out is for her investment to earn. And if she is not good in managing her properties then her objective is defeated. For prospective tenants, she requires recommendation or reference - a known person like a doctor or parish priest. All she would do is to call that reference and ask about the background of the prospective tenant.
