Current landlord check

[kfort]

I called a prospective tenant`s references today then proceeded to call his current landlord of 7 months. It is Mainstreet management. They tell me no notice has been given. The actual building manager wasmoving today so i had to call head office. Is it possible that the paperwork hasn`t been forwarded yet? Are they trying not to lose a client? How worried should I be? Decline his application?

For reference his current employer loves him and WILL cosign if i need him to...

Kris

 

[margaretcowan]

I would wait until I could talk with the building manager to find what kind of tenant he`s been. I`d also phone his landlord previous to his present one, who will have no qualms about telling you all the details, superb to sordid.

In December with fewer tenants looking, it`s tempting to not do all your homework on tenant screening, only to realize when they`ve moved in you`ve made a big and often costly mistake. I`ve been there! I ended up getting the bailiff one time to get a tenant out that I rented to on Dec 15.

For me, it`s a red flag that the main office has no record of him giving notice. Wait until you find out for sure if he hasn`t given notice. If does that to them, he may pull the same on you.

Good luck,
Margaret
I called a prospective tenant`s references today then proceeded to call his current landlord of 7 months. It is Mainstreet management. They tell me no notice has been given. The actual building manager wasmoving today so i had to call head office. Is it possible that the paperwork hasn`t been forwarded yet? Are they trying not to lose a client? How worried should I be? Decline his application?

For reference his current employer loves him and WILL cosign if i need him to...

Kris

 

[REINteam]

Hi Kris,

Do you know if his last lease was 1 year or monthly? If a year and he`s leaving now with 5 months left then why is he leaving...and odds are he hasn`t given notice if this is the case. Get a clear answer on this, but don`t give the ok until you have it. Agree with Margaret, get the landlord before the current one.

And if his employer will cosign then get the cosign! An employer that over the top...are you sure it was a company you called, or was it a staged reference?? Find out what company he works for, get the contact number online, then call the office and ask to speak with your tenant directly...but I`d still get the cosign if you move forward, why not!

 

[kfort]

I called the previous landlord, the guy who answered had no idea about any rental property. It was the right number and once I asked for the specific name I was told to call back at 6:30 when they get home. Another voice in the background leads me to believe that there are 3 people living at the house. ... therefore probably not someone who owns rental properties. I`ll dig further. I`ll also call employer back and ask for an appointment for an estimate (soffit / siding business)

I have a few other prospects, though one sounds significantly better than the other two. I`ve already gone down the road of renting to a questionable character. Luckily it ended with my ~$550 holdback of damage deposit and no challenge. I won`t do that again. However I`m still improving my skills on screening as well. I`ll find out his last lease term if I can however main office told me with no record of notice they cannot pass on any details. I`l press the PM for info and see if she caves.

so far I`ve got:
start with "im calling about the place for rent"... see where that leads.
throw out some incorrect info and see if it is corrected.
call all references and reject if they don`t fill out the form entirely.
credit check for top 2 or 3 candidates.
no pets. ever. not even if _______.
google name
google phone number too - this actually turned up an old kijiji ad from one prospect who had a basement suite for rent down the street a month earlier... as a result I declined them. Why did they have a place for rent 35 days before needing a place to rent?


The market for rentals here is excellent. I`ve had a few replies asking if the as was for real as it looked too good to be true. I`m hoping to not eat a month`s rent but already recognize that would be easier than dealing with another gong show tenant who trashes the tub, fridge, walls, pays late, and doesn`t clean up on exit.

Anything I missed?

 

[invst4profit]

QUOTE (for @ Dec 3 2010, 07:14 PM) However I`m still improving my skills on screening as well.

Anything I missed?


So far everything unfortunately.

Kfort you have already had far to many red flag signals on this individual to waste your time digging any farther.
Although you may be improving your skills you are still ignoring the information you already have received due most likely to the fact that you are feeling desperate.
1) tenant is moving after only 7 months in present place
2) Tenant is moving in December without reason
3) present LL is unaware tenant is moving.
4) employer is obviously a fake, employers do not not make unsolicited offers to guarantee employees rent.
5) previous LL was obviously a fake and simply bluffed his way through when he dropped the ball.

When screening tenants as soon as one thing looks fishy assume the worst. A second item should mean a automatic reject.
You will likely be sorry if you accept this applicant.

 

[kfort]

is 7 months really that uncommon?
December would be a slow month I`m sure.
Employer was legit, from a blocked # they answered w/ business name. Although I could not find it when googled. I actively solicited his signing on the dotted line, he accepted. I also drove through where they are working, work trucks with name on them were there.
Previous LL seemed very fake. Best case scenario very disorganized which would make their opinion hold less weight in my mind also.

Applicant was rejected. I am in no way desperate, possibly too quick to give people the benefit of the doubt but not desperate. Ican carry that mortgage for as long as needed without worry. It would obviously be something I`mtrying to avoid, but not worrying about.QUOTE (invst4profit @ Dec 3 2010, 08:01 PM) So far everything unfortunately.

Kfort you have already had far to many red flag signals on this individual to waste your time digging any farther.
Although you may be improving your skills you are still ignoring the information you already have received due most likely to the fact that you are feeling desperate.
1) tenant is moving after only 7 months in present place
2) Tenant is moving in December without reason
3) present LL is unaware tenant is moving.
4) employer is obviously a fake, employers do not not make unsolicited offers to guarantee employees rent.
5) previous LL was obviously a fake and simply bluffed his way through when he dropped the ball.

When screening tenants as soon as one thing looks fishy assume the worst. A second item should mean a automatic reject.
You will likely be sorry if you accept this applicant.

 

[Berubeland]

Invest4profit... is 100% correct.

The employer is also a fake.

If you`re trying to qualify a tenant and asking yourself questions, turn them down.

Any sign of deception is an automatic NO!

I just got a fake job letter, I called the employer and she didn`t know the applicant, it turns out her aunt works at that location. I sent the denial email and got a call back from the business owner about 7 minutes after saying she "remembers" her working there and she always calls the girl by her aunts name. It`s a small fish and chip restaurant, there`s no way that every person working there doesn`t know each other.

Every year I tell myself that I should just go on a month long December vacation...

 

[housingrental]

That might be often the case but people do make errors on applications and unfortunately many landlords aren`t always the most helpful when checking references.

When dealing with larger property management companies the contact point might not always be aware of everything - like if N9`s forms had been provided to someone else and not updated on system yet etc.. - or be willing to disclose any meaningful info. When dealing with owners that self manage some might complain about the tenant due to interpersonal or lifestyle reasons but the story they tell when asked - of consistently paid rent - might be the more important one to pay attention to.

I remember when I use to rent I had applied to an apartment and provided a phone number for job reference that was incorrect - I put a 519 area code (the local one) instead of a 905 one where the person I worked for lived. Thankfully PM company checked in with me on being wrong number.

Digging deeper for seemingly ideal or less than ideal applicants isn`t a bad way to go.

 

[invst4profit]

Probably the best decision Kford. I found when starting out that I also gave applicants the benefit of the doubt but quickly learned that there was no reason to do that in this business. I quickly adapted my approach such that I suspected every applicant to be a fraud. In this way I never had to over work or "dig deep" as the best applicants quickly rose to the top. They were organized, had nothing to hide and generally speaking the screening went without a hitch.
On the other hand misinformation, evasive answers and what appeared to be sloppy applications usually turned out to be undesirable applicants.
My approach is to quickly reject questionable applicants or those with incomplete or incorrect information rather than dig deeper to not only save time but to simply accept the fact that the vast majority are not making mistakes the misinformation was intentional.
If I have to work at screening a applicant, calling them to confirm or correct info or to fill in missing info, they are not worth my effort.
It`s bad enough having to chase tenants without also having to chase applicants. They come to me well prepared or they simply don`t muster.

 

[housingrental]

Hi Greg
I appreciate your perspective
In some situations, like if the product isn`t particularly strong, or your dealing with disorganized and first time renters, a good chunk of applicants are just sloppy and it is to your benefit as an operator to spend the extra time.

 

[invst4profit]

True enough.
This is why I include a cover sheet with my application forms explaining clearly what information is required and what my expectations are regarding the completion of the form. I take the time to clearly explain that incomplete or incorrect forms will usually result in a rejection. I have found this effort put in up front helps weed out the tire kickers and least desirable applicants.
Putting this effort in up front when first meeting applicants allows me to immediately reject less desirable applicants that provide incomplete or incorrect information without farther time spent on my part chasing. As well many times there attitude toward having the information explained to them will give me a good sense of whether I want them as a tenant.


One of the other interesting things I have learned about people in this business is if they do a sloppy or shoddy job in applying for something as important as a place to live it generally reflects similarly on all aspects of there life. Not necessarily someone I desire as a tenant.

However: A sliding scale of expectation must be incorporated depending on the quality of a LLs units. With lower end units one can rarely expected more than a applicant`s name to be correctly filled in. But then again in some cases LLs only require a heart beat.

 

[kfort]

All valid perspectives. Thank you all for contributing. Though I have owned one rental property for about 1.5 years now that equates into 3 tenants and I still have a lot to learn. I like the cover page idea. I do send a note explaining that I aim to provide a service that benefits both and that pets etc. generally result in a deposit deduction at move out which leaves hard feelings for both parties involved. I`ll make up a more significant letter and send it along in the future.

I finally got a call back from the direct property manager of that tenant, he was on a 6 month lease (it was up last month) and had 5 bounced cheques... I had already declined him thanks in part to advice given here. It`s nice to be able to post a "rookie" question and not get belittled for it.

I have very little debt load overall, I feel no pressure

 

[invst4profit]

Kford keep them coming. Rookie questions often elicit the most interesting discussions. They often bring out the half full/half empty personality discussions allowing some of us to preach to someone other than the choir.

 

[housingrental]

investsmart?

RE:


However: A sliding scale of expectation must be incorporated depending on the quality of a LLs units. With lower end units one can rarely expected more than a applicant`s name to be correctly filled in. But then again in some cases LLs only require a heart beat.