Warning Signs of a Potential Problem Tenant : A Potential Renter Who Has Had Multiple Jobs
If you are a landlord or real estate agent, you know that checking a potential tenant’s bank, credit, background, landlord references, and employment information can help you determine whether that person would be a good rental prospect. If the potential renter has shown a history of paying his or her rent on time, that person would make a good tenant, right? Actually, there are other signs that could indicate a tenant who might not become a problem.
Everything else about the applicant appears to be okay so we sometimes ignore these warning signs. Many other times, we are in such a hurry to get the unit back on a paying basis, we go ahead and rent to the person anyway.
When your applicant begins to make a series of statements or excuses of why he or she cannot comply with your requests for information, you may have a potential problem renter. In these instances, you really need to explore further and to ask follow-up questions.
A Potential Renter Who Has Had Multiple Jobs
Has the potential renter had many jobs with short work histories over the years? Does his or her history demonstrate an income potential that may make it difficult for him or her to pay rent on time? It is an indicator that you may have issues down the road if the possible tenant will not explain how he or she makes a living or provide you a verifiable source of income.
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Having a job history that shows instability can mean many things and speak volumes about this individual so be sure to ask about why they have gone from job to job, watch out for them speaking badly about their previous bosses or workplace especially if it’s every job. When an individual goes from job to job it makes it very difficult for them to move up the ladder and earn more income within most companies so their earnings tend to stay at the same levels, not to mention they don’t get too attached to anything or seemingly anyone. Be sure you ask for all the references for their jobs over the last several years and follow up with each of them, you may have to contact them several times before you get a response but it is advised to not give up until you have spoken with them.
When you have someone that is job jumping you really need to be aware of their previous rental situation, if they have jumped jobs there’s a really good chance they are doing the very same things with their living arrangement. When verifying their income be sure that you consider they need enough income to supply you a good deposit, some places require your income to be 3 times the rental rate and some are even more.
Be sure to do your due diligence, follow up with all the references and set your deposit accordingly and you should be in good shape.
Ultimately, as a landlord or property manager, you won’t always know what type of tenants you will be dealing with until you’re in the leasing process. However, Instant Tenant Screening should give you an idea. Past behavior is a likely dictator of future behavior. Remember to always clearly state the expectations and outline the consequences of breaking the rules in the lease agreement. As it is a legally binding document, it can guide and protect most any situation you encounter.
One of the easiest ways to address tenant problems is to avoid them altogether. To ensure you get the information you need we’ve created a download that shows you the //static.leadpages.net/leadboxes/current/embed.js 9 Most Effective Methods To Reduce Tenant Problems. Get your download today!
You may want to review some other warning signs of problem tenants as well, see what else you can do to address those issues: