Real Estate Professional · seattle, WA · Member since 2008 · 43 posts · 1 vote
I ran a criminal check on a workman recently hired & found out he is a convicted felon & was in prison until 2011 ( crime-identity theft). Our ad specifically said do not apply if you cannot pass a criminal background check. He is a good worker, but I am very concerned about having him work on occupied properties (so far I have only had him do exterior yard work on vacant houses)-- When I confronted him about what we found, he said that I was happy with his work so why am I concerned about lhis past & doesn't everyone deserve a chance, etc.
Use him on your vacant properties if he is doing a good job. Even if it is just outside for now. He has a point about a second chance. You may get burned or you may have someone that will be extremely loyal because you took a chance and gave him a second chance.
appreciate the feedback--while I believe in second chances, the fact that he ignored the caveat on our ad of "don't respond if you cannot pass a background check", indicated to us that he was ok in being deceptive--even if it was to prove himself as a good worker so we would overlook the criminal aspect--I feel that having him around increases our liability for a lawsuit, and if something Actually DID happen, we had knowledge & put our tenants and their security at risk---PS--asked our attorney & he said get rid of him, so that is the plan--
If you're using him on vacant property then there is little chance for him to repeat the offense. However, once a felon always a felon. Trust but verify... I would be really careful about giving him credit cards to purchase supplies. You might have to deal with him on a different level, especially at first. You might want to talk to his PO if he has one; there may be a program that gets you a tax break. Tread lightly, especially since he lied on his application.