Real Estate Investor · Millsboro, DE · Member since 2008 · 480 posts · 26 votes
I was thinking about building a site where we could list all the tenants we've come across who don't pay, and we have to evict. (or substance abuse/drug dealers, violence, etc.) You could add them for free, and we would know who not to rent to in our area. (eventually of course)
Does anyone know if a site like this already exists, or if there is a public database already? I couldnt find any, and just started having tenants recently.
Court action results in court records. By definition the records are not in one database as the courts are generally organized along county or state lines.
Have you googled for tenant screening services? Do any have national databases that would compete with what you have in mind?
I wonder who is responsible for the data that is entered. If someone puts in a mistaken record and a person is harmed how do things get correct? Is anyone liable?
What if people were to start listing names of people they simply don't like? That would be vindictive and someone would end up being sued. Probably the site owner and staff.
Credit reporting agencies have all the information anyone needs when deciding whether to rent to someone or not. Making the information public would violate their rights to privacy.
We considered doing such a list, but after consulting attorneys, thought it wasn't the best of ideas. There are one or 2 sites out there doing it, but they are by no means comprehensive in the least.
Great concept, lots of possibilities of legal danger, though.