As a landlord or property owner, it’s vital to screen your tenants. This protects the property you’ve invested time and money in and protects you financially. During the screening process, you’ll access information concerning your potential tenant’s credit scores, employment history, income reports, and any debt they may have.
When it comes to how to screen your tenants, there are a few options. First, you can screen your tenants manually. This requires more time and effort on your part. Tenant screening services are a popular alternative to manual credit checks as they save time and provide accurate information that’s simple to integrate.
If you’re interested in using an automated resource to screen your tenants, there are a few things to know. Read on to learn the five things you need to know about tenant screening services and how you can get started today!
1. You Still Need the Rental Application and Permission
Before you begin your tenant screening process through a service, it’s important to know that you still need permission and a rental application in order to run the report.
The rental application includes personal information on the tenants you’re screening. For instance, you can access their current residential address, email, phone number, first and last name, residence history, employment history, and even debt to income ratio on their application. You’ll also be able to see their bank accounts and financial information.
When a tenant brings you their rental application, you can ask for permission and have them sign a consent form. Once you have permission, you’re set to start the screening process. Or better yet, you can use a rental application that asks for these authorizations and automatically starts the complete screening process. The best thing about receiving a tenant screening report is that it offers an online application where landlords streamline the screening process. It’s less work for everyone and means that landlords efficiently get all the information they need.
2. You’ll Access Credit and Income Reports
It’s important to know what information you’ll access when you use a screening service. The most important information you’ll be able to see is your potential tenant’s credit report and income history. Let’s take a closer look at how you can access these and how they affect your decision.
Credit Reports
Credit score and history are two of the most significant determining factors when choosing which tenants are trustworthy and which aren’t. Credit score demonstrates how your tenants use money. If they have a low credit score, this could indicate late payments or large amounts of debt.
Sometimes, a low credit score simply indicates that a tenant hasn’t had a credit card or loan out before, so they’re building their credit. In most cases, however, low credit scores and poor credit histories reflect on that tenant’s ability to pay consistently and on time.
When you use a tenant screening service, you can enjoy simple access to credit reports and history. This saves you time when determining which tenants qualify!
Income History
Our tenant screening services also provide income history and reports. This includes employment history, how much money each tenant makes per year, and other financial information. It’s critical to access income history so you can make sure your tenants will be able to pay rent.
Some landlords require a tenant’s monthly income to be four times the amount of rent each month, while others aren’t as strict. Use our screening services and interpret the data however you prefer.
3. Enjoy Automated Background Checks
It’s also important to know that you can access automated background checks through our tenant screening services. These background checks include criminal records, public records, any history of bankruptcy, as well as eviction records. Once you have access to your tenants background, you can interpret this data and make a decision.
4. Have Access to All Three Credit Bureaus
When you use our tenant screening services, you’ll have access to the three credit reporting agencies. Use Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian to look at credit reports, history, and data you can rely on. Our services allow you to pull data instantly to access everything you need to know about your tenants.
Once you receive the data listed above, you can determine which tenants qualify and which don’t. With easy to understand results, you’ll be able to move tenants in and out quickly!
5. Integrate Credit Reporting Services Easily
The onboarding process for our tenant screening services is simple. Our experts will walk you through how to integrate this service on your platforms. Our experts offer turnkey solutions that can be set up within a day as well as custom integrations that may take a longer. No matter what kind of platform you prefer, our team can help you integrate tenant screening products seamlessly!
