Tenant Screening Part 1
Whether you are a Rental Agent or a Property Management Company or Landlord, it is not difficult to screen the tenant and do back ground checks by following some basic and right steps. The Tenant Screening Process starts when you decide to rent your property and start thinking of the next process to rent out your property.
There are standards set in your mind on the rent, security deposit, type of tenants and their backgrounds, other terms and conditions. Based on these preferences, you start to look for a tenant. There are various ways to find a tenant – through print ads, online ads, references, word of mouth, social media, hoardings or display boards at the entrance of the house.
First Contact
The first contact with the tenant is usually through a mail or a phone call. From the very first contact, the screening process has started. Communicate the features of the property in a detail and effectively to the prospective tenant. Simultaneously you have to qualify the tenant by asking proper and appropriate questions. The questions can be like:
- Name
- Phone Number & Email ID
- Occupancy Date
- No of Family Members
- Details of Family Members who will live in the property
- Occupancy Date
- Reason for leaving / shifting
- Discussion on the Rent & Security Deposit & will you give the security deposit before moving into the house?
- Do you have any pets?
- Do you have relatives or friends who frequently spend the night at your house?
- What is your typical day look like?
- Do you have any questions?
Do not waste your time showing the property to people who will not qualify. Discuss with the tenant your expectation for property upkeep of the property. So you need to ask the correct questions to qualify the tenant before proceeding to the next step of showing the property.