The credit report tenant records are one of the most important things that you as a property owner must have. These documents and files are the ones that tell you whether or not an applicant is able to fulfill the role of being a tenant in your property.

When you use a company to check these records, you will find out everything you need to know about the possible tenant’s credit history. It is a process that must be done for each new application. Failure to do so can bring a set of problems that you could have otherwise avoided. This article enumerates the three potential problems.

Breach of Safety

As a property owner, you may or may not be living on the property that you are leasing out. There may also be other tenants currently living on the property. If you accept a new tenant without knowing their credit details, you could be placing your existing tenants’ safety, and your own, at risk.

A new tenant might be hard up for money, which in itself is usually a solvable problem. However, if the new tenant has money issues pertaining to an illegal matter, or has an income from criminal sources, then your safety is completely blown. Checking the credit report tenant details beforehand will save you from being forced into such a situation. Using a specialized company to do it for gives you even greater depth.

People Who Are Unable To Manage Their Financial Life

A credit report tenant record will also tell you if your possible new tenant is known for being a regular payer. That is, it will be noted by their previous landlord if they were always on time for payments of any sort. A person’s ability to always pay on time is one of the qualities that a property owner would look for.
If you accept people who have a history of being late in payments, you may find yourself having to enter unnecessary conflicts between you and that tenant. As the owner, you cannot let yourself adapt solely because of one person’s monetary problems. It is bad not only for business but also for your reputation as a property owner.
Running a check on the credit report tenant records will also let you know if the applicant has had any past troubles with managing any other aspect of their financial income. This includes any record of bankruptcy and even any charge-offs.

Criminal Activity

The most unwanted situation for a property owner is to have a tenant who is involved with criminal activity. While a credit report tenant check may not give you any information pertaining to their exact criminal history, it is linked to it and can show any discrepancies made in their financial status. Cross referencing this to their personal record is a good way for companies to weed out unwanted tenants.

The Major Things to Avoid in a Tenant

The key things to watch out for in a tenant are:

• People who do not pay on time.
• People who are unable to manage their income successfully.
• People who hide or lie about their criminal activities.

For all of your tenant screening, tenant background check, and tenant credit check needs turn to FidelisAM.com

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At this point, you will have to ask yourself how you want to handle the screenings. This is where a third person party, or a company, can come in and help you. A company that specializes in screening tenants can offer you many benefits.

Time Management

Hiring a company to check the validity and history of your applying tenants will help you save a lot of time. Usually, you would have to deal with pulling information on a single client from multiple sources, an activity that can take you at least a day. However, a company can take over for you. While they deal with the tenant screening, you can apply that same time doing other important activities.

Also, a company works much faster than a single person. You can give them the information of a possible tenant and find yourself getting the results within several hours.

Thoroughness

A company that specializes in screening tenants will be able to check your tenants’ history with a thorough ease that you would not be able to achieve by yourself. They are liable to have much more contacts than you, and will be able to utilize them to effect.

Accurate Results

Anyone makes mistakes, and when you are backed up in trying to deal with every tenant screening that comes your way, you are bound to mess up at some point, be it arranging different papers or putting a name down on the wrong space. A hired screening company is made up of many people whose combined efforts and use of modern technology will result in much less mistakes than if it were done by one person alone.

Efficiency and Simplicity

When you check your work list, you always look for ways of completing your objectives in the easiest and simplest way possible. With the help of a tenant screening company, you will succeed in doing so. The presence of a hired company sorting out a major part of your business will give you better preparation time and a mind that is clear of screening-related problems.

Safety

A tenant screening company will also be able to stand as a shield between you and the possible tenant if said tenant is actually a fraud or connected to illegal practices. If you were to do the research yourself, you will probably be deliberately led away from any unsavory reports and details, and may accept the application without much thought.

A company is much more thorough and can dig deeper than you can. If they find anything that may hinder the client’s ability to meet the lease agreements, or anything that can negate or bring trouble to you and your contract, they will inform you promptly. You will be able to decline the application with a clearer conscience.

For all of your tenant screening, background check, and credit check needs, turn to FidelisAM.com.

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First off, if a crime occurs on your property, what should you do? In many cases, theft or burglary occurs from time to time. Another fairly common crime that your tenants may be victim to is mugging or battery. Obviously, your first concern is your tenant. Make sure that he or she is alright, call the proper authorities (i.e,, the police in most jurisdictions but sometimes the country sheriff), and take care of the immediate situation. Safety and the well-being of your tenants should be your highest priority.

Of course, once a crime like a burglary has occurred, there may be some operational issues to consider. There are also the “public relations” (or PR) concerns to address.

If a break-in has occurred, often there are repairs that need to be made. Things like broken windows or door jambs must be repaired in the case where a thief forcibly broke into one of your tenant’s homes. You may need to change locks. Better exterior lighting might be a tactic you employ to dissuade would-be burglars from attempting to break into your residential complex.

Then there is the PR situation. If a crime occurs on your premises, you may be prone to keeping it a secret. After all, what your tenants don’t know won’t hurt them, right? Wrong. Eventually, the word will get out and your tenants will question your motives and ethics. Your tenants will talk, there might be a story on the news about it, and there is little doubt that your local newspapers will report it.

Why even go down that path? Get out in front of it and make sure that you control the message. In fact, personally contact each of your tenants and have a brief conversation about the incident. Then, hold a meeting where you all discuss the idea of watching out for one another. You may be surprised at the success of this and the goodwill you will develop by doing it.

Now, the question turns to what you should do if you discover illegal activity being conducted by your tenants. In these trying economic times, it may be tempting to turn your head in fear of evicting a tenant and not being able to find a replacement tenant. Don’t be mistaken: If you find evidence of illegal activity like drug manufacturing (meth production is a huge problem), you must tackle it head on. After all, your property may be at risk and your tenants are potentially in harm’s way.

You must check your local laws to see what you can and cannot do. However, if your lease agreement is well-written, it will have verbiage in it that speaks to illegal activity and the recourse you have if you find evidence of it. You do not necessarily have to prove a legal case; the mere discovery of drug paraphernalia can be grounds for eviction.

If, however, the illegal activity is minor and does not pose a threat to the safety of your tenants or put your property in a precarious situation, you can choose to refrain from renewing the lease it is due.

Use your best judgment and know that considering the safety of your tenants is the right thing to do.

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That is a strategy for frustration. Let’s turn that situation upside-down. It would be preferable to do the following exercise before you need a new tenant.

You need to envision your ideal tenant. Think of everything you want in a tenant and then take it another level. Of course, your ideal tenant will pay on time (preferably early), will not be noisy or abusive, will keep a clean apartment, park in his spot, have nice guests over on occasion who are just as nice or nicer than he is, and many other things.

When you are creating this “customer (or tenant) avatar,” you need to dig deeper. Not only should you imagine your ideal tenant’s behavior as a tenant but also her behavior as a person. After all, you rent to real human beings, not avatars! So imagine what this person does for a living. What makes him successful at his job? How does he dress? What time does she wake up in the morning and what does her morning ritual look like.

In short, imagine every single aspect about your perfect tenant. Clothes, hobbies, skills, likes and dislikes, the car he drives, the people he associates with—everything!

You will find that you can make a perfect visual image of this person, as well. Is it a man or a woman? Long hair or short hair? What color hair, eyes? Slight of build, muscular, or heavy? You decide—it’s your perfect tenant!

What is the purpose of this exercise? There is growing evidence that what you seek can be manifested through your thoughts. Now, nobody knows why things come to be…they just do. The idea, then, is to imagine that perfect tenant, down to every last detail.

You may find that he (or she) just walks through your door. Actually, you may start attracting many “ideal tenants” and have the “problem” of turning away really good candidates for rental units you may have open.

Like you read before—it’s best to do this exercise before you actually need it. Do not try to do it if you are desperate to fill a unit. You know what you get then? That tenant that fits what you need at that very moment: A passable background check with available funds right now. But you may have opened your door to a problem down the line.

If you can create your own destiny—or if there is even a chance—why not take it?

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Each year, Mother Nature wreaks havoc on rental properties all across the land, from damage causes by snow, water, hail, lightning, and myriads of other things. Winter storms cause billions of dollars in damage each year and property management companies spend considerable money and time preparing for winter storms and cleaning up in their aftermath.

If you live in “Tornado Alley” or in areas with frequent tropical storms and hurricanes, there are some things you can do to prepare for the worst. These “best practices” can be applied in less extreme circumstances, too.

First and foremost, make sure that your properties are in top working order to begin with. Dilapidated roofs and siding or poorly maintained parking lots (that need paving or are riddled with potholes) will fall apart in the lightest of storms, so get them fixed right now. Now is the time to fortify!

Make sure that your insurance coverage is up to snuff, as well. There is nothing worse than thinking your insurance covers a circumstance only to find out after the fact that you were mistaken. Have a really good conversation with your insurance agent and find out what is covered, what isn’t, and assess how you will bridge any gaps.

You should also have emergency supplies on hand. Things like fresh water and canned food will go a long way in times where you lose electricity and/or the roads get washed out. A flashlight, matches, a propane camping stove with several propane canisters, and some pots and pans, dishes, and silverware (plastic utensils are fine) will help you function when modern conveniences are unavailable.

You will be a local hero if you are able to furnish your tenants with the above emergency supplies!

Keep tarps and sandbags on hand if you live in a severe rain area.

Additionally, keep very good relations with your outside vendors, like roofers, parking lot repavers, and local utilities like the electric and gas company. Never underestimate the power of a good working relationship when it comes to positioning yourself in line to get things fixed in emergency or urgent situations.

Consider addressing some of the ideas above in your monthly newsletter (you do publish one, right?)–there is a lot of power in informing your tenants about these things. Tell them what emergency supplies to keep on hand and where to get them.

Make sure that your entire staff knows where emergency turn offs are for power, gas, and water.

By taking a few simple precautions and ensuring that your staff and tenants know what to do in cases of emergencies, you can make those winter storm preparations that will give you the peace of mind knowing that you have done all you can to mitigate the big risks.

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While most rental agreements run their course without any changes necessary, on occasion, you may find that your rental agreement needs updating. One situation where this becomes painfully obvious is when the people seemingly living in an apartment are clearly not the original tenants.

Often, the case arises where a relationship develops such that a “guest” becomes a roommate. For example, you may have an agreement where there are two tenants, Bill and Bob. Bill has a girlfriend who, at first, stays overnight once in a while. After several months, you notice that Shelly, Bill’s girlfriend, is over “a lot.” Her car is always there and she seems to be there more often than not.

What do you do? Is she a guest? Is she a roommate? Do you need to amend the rental agreement?

Laws vary, of course, but—in general—a guest becomes a roommate per the verbiage specified in the rental agreement. This is why it is vitally important to cover your bases in your rental contracts—have them written and/or reviewed by a competent real estate attorney. It will be money wisely spent.

Assuming that the necessary verbiage is contained in the rental agreement, simply follow the process. For example, if the rental agreement states that a tenant can have a stay-over guest 4 times in one month, and you know that Shelly has stayed over night 14 out of 18 days, there is a great chance you can convince Bill and Bob that they need to add Shelly as a tenant to the rental agreement.

If they decline, you should attempt to either reconsider your request or tell Shelly to stay over less often. Abide by the rules or face the consequences.

The ultimate consequence, of course, is eviction. If Bill and Bob are breaching their rental agreement, you have every right to begin the eviction process.

However, you may choose not to, in which case it is in your best interest to get Shelly on that rental agreement.

Courts vary widely in their treatment and application of “guests versus roommates” – you may want to find out how your local jurisdiction treats such cases. Of course, the past is not necessarily indicative of how they may rule in your case, but history is a good indicator of how they may respond.

Obviously, each case is unique. The best rule of thumb to follow is this: If it looks like someone has moved in, do your darnedest to get them on the rental agreement. Failure to do so can amplify your exposure to a financial calamity down the road.

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However, on occasion, a tenant will leave without notice, and you are left having to deal not only with finding another tenant to rent to, but also having to handle properly removing the personal property that was left behind.

Believe it or not, you are responsible—in most cases—for safekeeping the personal property of a tenant who skipped out on you. Local statutes dictate the specifics, but in many cases you have to hold the property for a pre-determined length of time and attempt to contact the former tenant to arrange pick up.

In some states, you have to notify in writing the proper authorities of what you plan on doing with the abandoned personal property. In general, you have 3 options:

1. Dispose of the property
2. Keep the property for yourself
3. Sell the property

Like nearly everything else in the rental property business, you must follow the established legal process to the letter of the law or else face fines and other penalties for failure to follow the rules.

Yes, it is your responsibility to both notify and store your prior tenant’s personal property. There are exceptions, of course. Food left in the refrigerator that is likely to go bad is something you can dispose of right away. Anything that may pose a safety hazard, like paint or week killer, can be disposed of as well.

You can choose to keep the personal property left behind in the apartment or rental unit, as is, but obviously, you will not be able to rent that unit until you clear it of the property left behind. Alternatively, you can store it nearby in a storage facility or onsite in your own storage space.

Note, however, that damages that occur to the property while it is in your custody and care is your responsibility; in short, if the property is damaged while in your possession, you will be made to pay for the damages. While it doesn’t seem fair, it is the law, and you must abide by it or face the consequences.

In that light, then, it behooves you to document everything that is left behind. Take an accurate inventory and accompany that written inventory with a photographic inventory. Use your digital camera or phone to take front, back, and side pictures of every single item left behind that you must store for the requisite number of days. Download those photographs to your computer and back the files up to a thumb drive or external hard drive.

Taking a proper inventory, corroborated with a visual depiction of every item held in your care, is a surefire way to mitigate any risks of the prior tenant coming back and laying blame on you for damages to their personal property.

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First of all, consider the maturity level of your average college student. In many cases, they are fresh high school graduates, out on their own for the very first time in their lives. Further, most of them will not be gainfully employed (their class work is their job, but it won’t pay the rent), and they will have zero experience living independently. Additionally, they may have no credit history whatsoever and they may not have ever purchased, leased, or rented anything on their own.

That all sounds bad, but it doesn’t have to be.

If the college student is still a minor, you have no choice but to add either or both parents to the rental agreement as co-signors because, by law, minors cannot enter into legally-binding contracts. Put another way, if you do not have the parents co-sign, you could be unable to legally seek judgment for unpaid rent.

It is, however, in your best interest to have either or both parents co-sign the rental agreement, whether or not their child is still a minor. Some kids lack maturity and responsibility, even if of adult-age, and will bail on you if something goes remotely awry in their lives. If a parent is on the lease, you can attempt to collect past-due rent from them, and you most likely will be successful in doing so.

Conduct the normal tenant screen on the students as well as the co-signors. If anything negative comes back, consider declining the rental application.

You will want your real estate attorney to write up a rental agreement that is specifically suited to renting to college students. For example, most leases do not have co-signors; however, college rental agreements ought to. Also, make sure that there are provisions in the agreement about noise, maximum occupancy, and repairs and damages.

College students are known to have parties. Parties can get out of hand fast, causing your other tenants undue grief, causing noise violations, and causing a lot of damage in a short period of time. Stipulate in your rental agreement the rules around parties. Address things like “quiet time,” the total number of people who can be in the premises at a time, and how damages to the inside and exterior will be handled.

Also, point out whether or not you allow sub-leasing, as most college students return home after the school year and only wish to pay rent for the time they are actually occupying your rental property.

Note that renting to college students is usually a safe bet. Each student will have planned—with his or her family—how they were going to arrange for the payment of rent for an entire school year. In most cases, you will not find yourself getting stiffed by college students.

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First of all, let’s address the nuts and bolts of hiring independent contractors versus employees.

Hiring guidelines are far less stringent. With independent contractors, you aren’t extending an offer of employment and therefore do not have to establish the right to work; it is assumed. You will not have to keep extensive records like social security numbers, drivers license information, or passport copies.

You will also not have to withhold taxes or even put them on your payroll. In fact, independent contractors are responsible for paying their own taxes and the only requirement you have is reporting what you pay them over the course of any given year. Check IRS rules for specifics.

With independent contractors, you will not have to administer their 401k or other types of retirement programs, whereas with employees, you most certainly will. There is high cost associated with the administration and record-keeping of such retirement plans.

Additionally, you do not have to provide disability insurance or unemployment benefits insurance for independent contractors; of course, these are added costs with additional overhead for program administration for employees.

There are some pitfalls to hiring independent contractors. Firstly, while you do not have to provide insurance for various risks, it may be in your best interests to do so. For example, if an independent contractor works on your behalf in a customer’s office and injures himself or somebody else, you and your business may be sued; at the very least, the costs of defending yourself in court could be prohibitive. If you have thorough business insurance, you may find that your risks of said issues are passed to the insurance company and they are more likely to settle a claim before it ever gets to court.

Another pitfall with hiring independent contractors is that you cannot dictate with as much detail as you can with an employee the working parameters. Things such as work times, work days, and work apparel are not under your purview. If, at any time, you are not satisfied with how an independent contractor represents your company, you can simply fire (or not rehire) him and call it a day.

You cannot do this as easily with an employee, even in “at will” states such as California. Sometimes, it takes weeks and even months to terminate an employee, who can simply choose to sue you for wrongful termination and tie you (and your funds) up in court for months or even years.

In the case of property management, your choice for hiring employees versus independent contractors is fairly simple: Run the numbers and see what works best for your situation. For landscaping services, it may be much more feasible for you to hire an outside company that to hire internally; there simply isn’t enough work on a weekly basis to hire an employee and hiring a part-time staffer may just not make sense given the level of effort required to place him on the payroll.

On the other hand, it may be a no-brainer to set up something with an independent contractor to come by once every week or two and perform the tasks necessary to keep your property looking beautiful.

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However, all that changes as soon as the kids go back to school. The temperatures drop, the rainy season may follow soon behind, and less people use the pool. It’s a familiar cycle.

As the landlord, you are responsible for taking care of the pool, ensuring that the water conditions are kept ideal, and making sure that your tenants can still use the pool even in the chill of autumn and winter.

Of course, if you’re smart and can afford the luxury, you will have in your employ a professional pool maintenance company. They know how to handle the transitions from summer to fall and back again. It is best to avail yourself of a competent pool maintenance company year-round, if you can afford the expense. Doing so will allow you to “stick to your knitting” – showing apartments, making new lease agreements, and managing your property to the best of your ability.

Creating a proper pool maintenance schedule is one of the first things you ought to do when it comes to the upkeep of your pool. Establish prior to the beginning of each season a maintenance calendar with your pool maintenance company. Hold them accountable to the tasks and duties assigned to them.

You may also want to consider buying in bulk your pool treatment chemicals, if you have ample storage and your locality permits it. At the very least, you can talk with your pool supply company about volume or subscription-based purchases.

Finally, a note on pool safety is in order. The variations in temperature can wreak havoc on your pool. Check with your pool maintenance company to make sure that everything about your pool is and remains in good working order. At least 4 times per year, during the transition from one season to the next, perform a safety evaluation. You will want to verify that you have kept current on all signage and that your safety tools like rings and floats are in good working order.

Take particular note of changes to the surface of the pool and its surrounding areas. Over time, many surfaces will become smoother, which increases the probability of “slip, trip, and fall” accidents.

Getting your pool maintenance in order right now is the prudent thing to do, especially as you will soon begin preparing your property for a variety of special issues that always occur during the fall months.

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