With more and more investors buying single family homes with the intent to rent, they must keep in mind property, people and perception. Landlords and property management companies are looking for well-maintained properties in ideal locations that can quickly be converted for the rental market. Tenant screening should always be a part of the rental application process, but may even be more important for single family home rentals as opposed to multi-family rental units. The single family property alone needs to be profitable and needs good tenants that are great stewards of the property and also are great neighbors in the community. This is why for these rentals all the tenant background checks should be performed including credit check, criminal background check, sex offender registry search, eviction check and even personal references.

Landlords looking for a return on investment in renting single family homes need to be patient, not just with the time for payoff but also for waiting for the right tenants. Bad tenants can easily turn a profitable venture into a financial disaster that could lead to eviction which means legal fees and lost revenue and possibly even property damage. It is imperative that landlords renting single family dwellings perform thorough tenant background checks and us a professional third party tenant screening company to do it.

Persistence in conducting tenant checks is crucial for single family rentals which means the owner/manager of the property must be patient and not sign a lease with the first warm body looking to rent. Patience in renting is key as once as the right tenant arrives everything else will fall into place the rental unit will become a profitable asset. Picking the most fiscally sound renters that have no criminal history or previous evictions and also has strong positive reference checks is the path to property payoff. To learn more about persistence, patience and payoff when it comes to renting single family dwellings please read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release

With the cost of home ownership on the rise families are renovating their homes to create an income suite. An income suite is basically an apartment within a single family home. Landlords can only rent such a unit if it passes certain permit requirements and has a living room, bathroom, bedroom, kitchen, and storage all within a self-contained apartment area. Income suites could be the next evolution in renting as purchasing a second home to rent out becomes prohibitive.

It is very important for these families choosing to convert part of their home into an income suite to conduct a very thorough tenant background check on prospective renters for a few reasons. First the family will be living in the same building as the tenants and to protect the landlords family and investment running a criminal background check, credit check, eviction search, social security number validation and sex offender search are a few ways to protect investment and avoid renting to a bad tenant or even a felon or someone with malfeasant tendencies.

With tenants living in the same home as the landlord family personal safety is of upmost concern and even more so than financial concerns. Looking into credit information and reviewing eviction records help to determine the financial risk associated with leasing to a tenant but only a criminal background check can uncover if the tenant or tenants have been convicted of a serious crime or are a registered sex offender. For new landlords looking to rent an income suite the costs for performing such an extensive tenant check may seem expensive. However, when you apply the risk of letting in a bad tenant than the cost of a thorough tenant screening becomes minimal. To learn more about the emergence of income suites and the importance of these new landlords to work with a professional third-party tenant screening company for thorough tenant background check reports read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release: http://tenantscreeningusa.com/tenant-screening-news/income-suites-an-emerging-trend-in-canada-that-could-make-its-way-to-the-usa-just-dont-forget-the-tenant-check/

Rent growth at multi-family rental properties across the USA are expected to increase about 5% in 2015. Slightly higher for the lower end “B” and “C” properties. Towards the end of 2014 new building of multi-family properties began construction to be ready for the forecasted market growth in 2015. However, even with all the reports showing increases in demand for apartments in the USA it is important for landlords and property managers to conduct thorough tenant background checks on applicants before signing a lease. The temptation to fill a newly built apartment complex is palpable but veteran landlords and property managers know that it is the acquisition of long term renters that brings in the most profit and provides a predictable revenue stream into the foreseeable future. Using a third party tenant screening company to vet potential tenants is very important in filling up your empty units with low risk high profit tenants. Performing eviction checks, credit checks, sex offender registry searches and criminal background checks are critical components to any tenant screening policy. It is also important to perform employment verifications and professional reference checks. A well vetted tenant has a much higher propensity of fulfilling lease agreements, paying their rent on time and staying longer. To learn more about the 2015 market expectations and why thorough tenant background checks are still important read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release: http://tenantscreeningusa.com/tenant-screening-news/landlords-in-a-growth-market-its-all-about-the-tenant/

Landlords and property managers conduct tenant background checks prior to leasing as a form of risk mitigation in order to protect financial investment and if applicable existing tenants.  This explains “why” while the “what” is the gathering of public records or consumer reports in order to gauge the viability of a new prospective tenant.  This vetting process also known as tenant screening takes into account the results of several background checks and/or consumer reports including credit reports, credit score, eviction checks, sex offender records and criminal history reports.  Combined these reports paint a picture of the potential tenant and gives the landlord the facts they need to make a well informed leasing decision that will produce financial revenue and help protect existing tenants.  This explains the “why” and the “what” and it is a third party tenant screening company that is the “Who”.  Third party tenant screening companies are trained in the lawful and legal use of public and consumer reports specific to tenant checks in the multi-family industry.  Working with a third party tenant screening company is a wise decision for landlords and property managers who want to remain compliant with relevant laws and regulations such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Fair Housing laws.  It is important that the “who”, “what” and “why” are all addressed to create a compliant tenant screening process and amicable landlord/tenant relationship.  To learn more about why, what and who in the tenant screening process read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release: http://tenantscreeningusa.com/tenant-screening-news/tenant-check-why-and-what-and-who/

As college dorms fill up to capacity often times last minute students find themselves without a place to live on campus. In these situations small landlords make an apartment available to rent to such students. Off campus living is necessary in many higher education institutes as on campus demand surpasses supply. Many times landlords with only one single family dwelling can rent out an apartment that could end up disastrous. This is why small landlords need to conduct a tenant background check on the student as well as the guarantor listed on the lease application. A landlord needs to protect property, community and their investment. One way to achieve a happy college student rental experience is to conduct a tenant check on both the student and guarantor including reference checks. Allowing a landlord to make a well-informed decision based on public records, personal references, and tenant screening, will help create a harmonious relationship with a student tenant. To learn more about how a small landlord can happily rent to a freshman or other college student read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release: http://tenantscreeningusa.com/tenant-screening-news/going-back-to-college-how-a-small-unitsingle-dwelling-landlord-can-happily-rent-to-a-freshman/

TenantScreeningUSA.com a leading supplier of TransUnion’s SmartMove platform celebrates the one millionth user of the growing software platform. TenantScreeningUSA.com in partnership with SmartMove provide the easiest, simplest and most secure internet based tenant screening system for landlords and small to mid-size property managers. Key features of the secure system are privacy controls which do not allow the landlord to see personally sensitive information about the potential renter. This is achieved by the renter entering in their personally identifiable information separately from the landlord portal. Information such as SSN, date of birth and bank account numbers remain secure. However, the landlord gets everything they need through this tenant background check system such as a credit report, credit score, national criminal history check and a professional leasing decision all within seconds after information is entered in the online tenant screening system. To learn more about TenantScreeningUSA.com and SmartMove read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release: http://tenantscreeningusa.com/tenant-screening-news/tenantscreeningusa-com-joins-transunion-in-celebrating-the-one-millionth-user-of-smartmove-platform-what-is-smartmove/

Over the past few years people took advantage of the recent economic downturn and subsequent lower housing prices to buy a second home. As rents increased and home ownership costs decreased many took the opportunity of buying a second house to rent out. Although this sounds like a profitable endeavor it is not always easy to become a first time landlord. Often first time landlords renting out their property for short term rentals like vacation rentals overlook the need to perform a thorough tenant background check. With the exception of duration the tenant screening process should be the same for both short term and long term rentals. A thorough tenant check should include a criminal background check and national sex offender registry search in addition to a credit report and credit score. Failure to perform a thorough tenant check on an applicant for a short term rental could end up costing the new landlord more than the rent amount and end up becoming a money pit instead of a profitable rental situation. Property damage and reputation damage can turn a successful rental operation into a disaster. Cutting corners in the rental screening process is never worth it, tenant checks are not very expensive and can help the first time landlord make the best decisions in regards to who they rent to short term or long term. To learn more about the pitfalls of being a first time landlord and why a through tenant check is important even for short term rentals read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release: http://tenantscreeningusa.com/tenant-screening-news/summer-rental-landlords-must-conduct-a-tenant-check-on-short-term-renters/

In April of every year the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) celebrates Fair Housing. This year HUD is focused on disparate impact, an increasingly popular term that describes a form of discrimination that is not on the face discriminatory. However, when looking at the overall tenant screening results it could show that a protected class is being disproportionally discriminated against even if the landlord implores the same tenant screening policies on everyone. Even if the landlord or property manager has no intent to discriminate against a protected class under the U.S. Civil Rights Act they could still be in violation of the law if the policy disproportionately harms that class. In addition recent moves by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Federal Trade Commission show greater scrutiny for the appropriate use of public records, especially criminal history records in the tenant screening process. Now more than ever it is a good idea for landlords and property managers to partner with a professional third party tenant screening company to help them stay compliant with an ever evolving legal atmosphere. To learn more about the impact HUD and disparate impact are having on the tenant screening industry read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release: http://tenantscreeningusa.com/tenant-screening-news/hud-celebration-of-fair-housing-month-focuses-attention-on-tenant-checks-and-disparate-impact/

Performing tenant background checks prior to leasing can be a complicated and frustrating task for the small landlord. This task however can become quite simple if the landlord used a professional tenant screening company to help vet potential renters. Professional tenant screening companies like TenantScreeningUSA.com make the whole vetting process very simple and provides the credit and criminal history to the landlord in easy to read reports making the leasing decision easier to make. For a modest fee it is very wise for the small landlord to use a professional tenant screening company to help determine who and who not to rent too. TenantScreeningUSA.com makes a normally complex task very easy and gets the appropriate information to the landlord without compromising the privacy and personally identifiable information of the renter. To learn more about how tenant screening companies make the tenant background check process easier read recent TenantScreeningUSA.com press release: http://tenantscreeningusa.com/tenant-screening-news/third-party-tenant-background-screening-companies-help-make-a-complex-task-easy/