Renting to Syrian Refugees

[David8043]

I have a 1/2 duplex unit for rent in Edmonton. After 1 week of advertising, the only party that wants it is a Syrian refugee family. They are new to Canada. Their English is non-existent. To the viewing, they brought along a friend as translator. The friend has been in Canada 8 months and could communicate, but barely. They were unable to fill out a rental application due to their English skills, but they were eager to give me money (presumably a deposit) which I did not accept yet. We are meeting tomorrow again (Saturday, August 3) I need advice from people who have dealt with this type of situation. What did you do? How did you proceed? I need replies ASAP. Thanks. David Schroeder

 

[kfort]

Get a better translator. Be clear on everyone's expectations or prepare for a bad experience . If all else fails try google translator but beware, it is weak at best

 

[JBagorio]

... They are new to Canada. Their English is non-existent. To the viewing, they brought along a friend as translator. The friend has been in Canada 8 months and could communicate, but barely. They were unable to fill out a rental application due to their English skills, but they were eager to give me money (presumably a deposit) which I did not accept yet. We are meeting tomorrow again (Saturday, August 3) I need advice from people who have dealt with this type of situation. What did you do? How did you proceed? I need replies ASAP. Thanks. David Schroeder

Hi David,

I hope my response is not too late given you might be meeting with them today?? First of all, I specialize in new comers (immigrants and refugees) in both Calgary and Edmonton operating in over a decade now.

We do love dealing with this new migrants as one of our tenant profiles. Despite the luck of credential and background history, they came to Canada to start a better life than what they have gone through in the past. They came here to stay away from trouble rather than causing one given the chance of a lifetime to be in a wonderful country such as Canada.

The filtration process is a little tricky but it is always good to develop the system. What we have done is finding the means to be able to communicate with them by hiring a translator, and also converted our document and forms in the process. Look for family or friends support. Given that they are with relative or friend during the viewing, it show that they have support. What we found with these new members, they are very respectful and always follow the rule we have set forth. Make sure that they are fully informed and understand all the conditions of the lease contract right at the get-go. Help them and teach them in every means to be able to get integrated even faster into their new surroundings.

Be mindful that most of these new comers have gone through the rigorous process through our immigration and government laws. They have to satisfy lots of requirement be it medical, educational, financial being, moral (relatives) support and sponsorship, etc…

Good luck! If you need more help feel free to give me a call.

 

[David8043]

kfort and IBagorio, Thanks for your replies. They both contained valuable information. Your response was not too late. I met the prospective tenants again on Sunday evening and I took along a tenant (from another property of mine) who is fluent in English and Arabic. At the end of the evening, everyone agreed that we should not proceed. This was good learning experience.