Tenant Background Check

Why do Landlords Conduct Tenant Background Checks?

A Tenant Background Check is conducted to verify the identity & personal history of a prospective tenant to properly access their qualifications and elicit any red flags, such as a criminal history, or bad financial history. 

Do I Need To Perform Background Screening On A Potential Tenant?

No one can predict the future, and some tenants aren’t a problem waiting to happen, but it’s nearly impossible to know which ones will be a problem without a tenant background screen.  Being a landlord is a business, and it’s important to use the information that is readily available to you to make the best decision you can on your potential tenant.  Especially when the information is free!  Bear in mind some of these potential scenarios...

·         Depositing even a few bad checks from tenants can cause landlords to get their checking account(s) blacklisted with Chex Systems, Inc.,  Chex Systems (pronounced “check systems”) is a network of Financial Institutions who regularly share information on mishandled checking, or savings accounts.  Far more serious than negative items on your credit report, negative items in Chex Systems can impinge one's banking history and make it virtually impossible to open new accounts with other banks.

·         Tenants can use fake or stolen licenses to help to impersonate someone else, then run off with months of unpaid rent.  Gypsy tenants are individuals who specialize in living in a locale for several month, then disappear without notice.  Gypsy tenants usually appear well-mannered and polished, and plan to use the residence for illegal activities such as prostitution, or even sublease the property out to other unsuspecting victims for profit.

·         Many landlords mistakenly believe that they are protected by their tenancy agreement, only to be the next victim used as revolving line of tenant scams among other unsuspecting landlords.  The tenant disappears with no job, assets, or forwarding address to pursue.

·         Tenants can use sophisticated techniques to fool even experienced landlords and have a wide range of scams in their arsenal such as websites that will provide them with false resumes or employment history, or any number of friends that can pose as a former landlord through a fake ID, or falsified paperwork.

·         Often, even worse than a tenant that disappears is one that will not leave.  Many states have very strong tenant protection laws.  Even if a tenant steps in the residence for one day and never pay you any money, it can take several months (in some cases up to a year) to have them legally removed.  Add to this the time, cost and frustration of navigating the court system, law suits, attorney and court fees, property damage, and lost revenue, and a bad tenant can quickly become a business disaster for a landlord.

·         Even if no tenant fraud is being committed, landlord references are often suspect as some landlords simply want to get rid of bothersome tenants.

·         These potential scenarios do not even speak to the problems associated with tenants who have a history with violent crimes.  As a landlord, your interactions with the wrong type of tenant can be deadly.

It doesn't take a brain surgeon to understand the huge number of different problems that can occur for landlords who simply take a potential tenant at his or her word.  As a landlord, you have ability to ascertain their real background information.  Don't be naive; obtain the necessary information, and make an informed decision based on actual facts, not assumptions.

What Should I Know as a Prospective Tenant?

Although this article is focused primarily on protecting landlords against bad tenants, there are a few things you should do before applying to rent a property.  Even though you may not be a renegade criminal bent on defrauding your landlord, you should definitely perform a background check on yourself.  Check not only your credit history, but your check history, criminal history, and entire background check history.  You may be surprised what you find.  Knowing about a problem beforehand may allow you to resolve it, or at the least, not be taken by surprise.

What is Included in a Tenant Background Check?

A tenant background check can include the following records:

·         State Criminal Records: Charges, Offenses, Dispositions, Sentences, Arrest File Dates & Case Numbers

·         Marriage, Divorce, & Death Records

·         Bankruptcies, Tax Liens, Judgments, & Law Suits

·         Past Address Verification: Address History, Phone Numbers, & Property Records

·         Identification Verification: Full Name, Maiden Name, Age, & Aliases

·         Find & Verify Known Relatives, Neighbors, & Associates

You may be speculating on why some of these records would be relevant.  For example, it is very prudent for landlords & property managers to obtain death records to help to ascertain if a potential tenant may be impersonating someone else, namely a deceased person.  This happens more than you think, do your homework!

What are the relevant Legal Matters associated with Tenant Background Screening?

Tenant background checks are unique, because they must adhere to certain legal guidelines.  To review information on relevant tenant screening laws, read the Fair Credit Reporting Act (PDF), the Fair Housing Laws, and the Non-Discrimination Laws (1964 Civil Rights Act).

How do I use Background Check Elite to Perform a Tenant Background Check?

Users can take advantage of the growing and FREE database at Background Check Elite to access thousands of public records applicable to tenant screening.  Please keep in mind the aforementioned legal issues before conducting a check on a potential tenant.  For landlords, or property managers, Criminal Records serve as a reasonable place to begin an investigation on a potential tenant.  You will certainly want to search through a number of other records resources including, but not limited to Probation Records, Motor Vehicle Records, Sex Offender Records, Death Records, Inmate Records, Civil Records, Divorce Records, Bankruptcy Records, Marriage Records...the list of records a landlord can and should check continues, but how deep to investigate, and what records you decide not to verify is up to your risk tolerance and particular needs as a landlord.  At any point in your search, you can retrieve a complete tenant background check instantly, by entering your potential tenant's name into the search box on the right.