What is a tenant screening report, first of all? What does it include? There are a variety of answers to this question depending on which service (and which package within that service ) you choose to go with. Your report may include at least one or all of the following: criminal background check, eviction history, credit report, sex offender registry search, employment verification, and specific national or local searches as needed. Each of these reports, individually and together, can tell you a great deal about the tenant you’re considering. We’ll go over how to check each report in detail below.
CRIMINAL BACKGOUND CHECK
A background check is going to give you a full overarching picture of a potential tenant’s history, including prior convictions or notable legal issues. We’ve written in detail about what’s included in a background check before, and we highly recommend reviewing that post for a full picture. Ultimately you’ll be able to see whether an applicant has issues in their past that may make them a poor fit for your property. However, be mindful as to whether or not you are allowed to use this report in your area or whether local laws prohibit using it in housing decisions. Seattle, for example, has a local regulation in place to prevent housing discrimination that states you can’t use criminal history.
EVICTION HISTORY
It’s always beneficial to know whether your applicants have had issues with their previous housing or landlord. An eviction report will give you a fuller picture of whether or not a tenant has had difficulties keeping and maintaining housing in the past. Eviction isn’t necessarily a dealbreaker, but if someone has more than one eviction in the background, that’s certainly worth considering for your own peace of mind. Dealing with a non-paying or problem tenant affects your bottom line. Here’s another post about what tenant residence history can tell you about your applicants.
CREDIT REPORT
This is a big one! If landlords order any report for their applicants, it’s usually this one. In order to check this particular tenant screening report, you’re going to want to familiarize yourself with the difference between VantageScore and FICO, because the number representations are different. Where one number may seem too low, it may turn out to actually be a good score in one system or the other. We highly recommend reviewing the linked post so you have a better idea of which numbers you should be looking for, as well as how to examine credit history to spot patterns in a tenant’s monetary behaviors.
SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY
This one is pretty straightforward – it gives you an answer as to whether or not an applicant has ever been convicted as a sex offender. If they have, you still have control over whether or not to offer them housing, but you must be familiar with your local laws and regulations as to whether you have to notify your other tenants that there’s a sex offender in the area. This is a personal call.
EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION
Also pretty straightforward: this report will tell you whether or not your applicant actually works where they say they work. You can also call to verify if you need the extra assurance. An employer cannot legally give you details about the individual, they can only verify whether or not they are an employee.
These are the main forms of tenant screening reports you’ll be dealing with. Local and national reports may be tacked on, and those will be individual to your area. If you need more assistance in reading through your reports, we recommend consulting your legal counsel or working with an experienced property manager.
There’s plenty more to understand about tenant screening and our experts will be happy to discuss them with you if you need additional guidance. For help in selecting the right tenants for your properties, we recommend our RentalConnect program. RentalConnect offers property owners and landlords a great alternative to the expense of full tenant screening. This service requires no on-site visit, sign-up, or membership fees, making it extra convenient. The $34.95 service fee is paid by the applicant. Available 24/7, RentalConnect is fast, easy, secure, and delivers reports needed to make an informed decision, including a credit report, a national criminal search, and a national eviction search.
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