Investing in investment property can have great rewards and benefits. Unfortunately, all great rewards are not realized without meeting an occasional challenge.
From time-to-time most landlords will undoubtedly run into a less then desirable tenant. Sometimes these tenants are inherited from the previous property owner, and sometimes they just appear from within what was thought to be an ideal tenant.
To better mitigate the risk of inheriting a challenging tenant, always check the following before granting a lease:
- Ask for three work references (if the applicant has been working at the same job for over three years two references will suffice). Tip – To help verify that the applicants references are not fabricated, call the company directly and ask for the Office Administrator, ask the Administrator if the applicant works/worked for the company.
- Ask the applicant to provide the two most recent landlords name and phone numbers (if the applicant has lived at a number of residences within one year you should flag this and inquire why). Tip – To combat false landlord information presented by the applicant, run a title check to ensure the owner of the property is who the applicant says it is.
- Apply a credit check on the applicant to ensure that they have good credit history, if you feel necessary run a criminal check on the applicant as well. The cost for credit and criminal checks range from $10-$50 depending on the agency.
These tips will help protect you, the landlord, from running into an unruly tenant and let you focus your time and energy on managing and maintaining your investment.
Contact propertymanagement@investagain.com to learn more about an effective tenant selection process.
Posted by Investagain Inc. 
