Why aren't property managers screening me as a tenant when I call?

Question

Recently I have been looking for a new place to rent. From what I have heard, property managers should be screening potential tenants on the phone prior to any showing taking place. I have called about six or so places and the property managers only asked me when I wanted to view it. No background questions at all.

So is it standard for property managers to not do any screening prior to showing the property?

Also, if I am vetting a property management company for my own rentals, should this be a concern?

Tom Keith · Answer

Nathan P. It sounds like they are either lazy or don't know how to pre qualify clients, either way it would be a concern to you as a prospective client as landlord.  A few questions asked would be a lot more efficient and cost effective than just taking you to see the property and then finding out that you might not be approved.  These same management companies might also be lax at doing proper tenant screening which would also cost you money every time there is a tun over.  You did well by thinking about this before making decisions.

Steve Morris · Answer

So is it standard for property managers to not do any screening prior to showing the property?

Are you submitting a signed application?  How, as a PM, am I supposed to qualify you if:

1) You're not serious enough to fill out an app?

2) You could be making up a story?

3) You don't even want to bother with coming in?

There's just too much liability if PMs start asking questions beyond stating asking rent and availability.

If you want to screen a PM, bring in your I&E, give them a week and ask how would they improve your NOI.

Monique Burns · Answer

I'm a big believer in thorough tenant phone screening. I made a video about it.  Phone Screening Explained HOWEVER...there are times it is not an efficient use of my time or my staff's time.  When I have a hot property and the phone is blowing up with people who want to see it, I do the process sort of backward.  I schedule all 10-30 people for the same time to see the house.  A few will show up. Of those who show up, I email the $35/adult the applications.  A few will fill it out.  I then do a quick court search.  Very few will have no history with landlords.  I don't look for evictions only that come up on background checks.  I'm looking to see how many times they've been involved in ANY landlord/tenant case.  I make sure it wasn't dismissed before I judge.  Innocent until proven guilty, right?  THEN I call them and ask my "prescreening" questions before I spend the money running their background check.

I admit too, my staff has skipped the prescreening questions because I'm guessing it's a more pleasurable use of their time to run around showing houses than sitting in the office working.

Kelly N. · Answer

I am an owner and I am guilty of this.  I describe the property and when it will be ready for move in, plus our criteria is in the ad itself (which they do not always read).  I am 15 minutes away from my rentals and show them in 2-3 hour blocks, scheduling 15 minutes per appointment.  Personally, I get a much better feel for people in person than I do on the phone, and I rarely have more than a few showings, and only have a few days in between tenants in order to fix the place up- even less if it is a place we have rented before and not a new purchase.

There are other reasons, too.  Sometimes people are very hard to understand on the phone- whether it be an accent or a bad cell phone, so I feel it is better to show the apartment and meet them in person.

Kelly

Linda Weygant · Answer

I much prefer to do my qualifications in person rather than over the phone.  I am much better at reading body language than I am at figuring that kind of thing out over the phone.  It may waste some of my time and theirs, but I feel it's worth it from my side.

Nathan P. · Answer

@Fred Heller - Interestingly, I've never had to pay an application fee before. Not sure why. Maybe I just got lucky.

@Steve Rozenberg - Good tips. I'll be sure to ask for some of those numbers next time.

Steve Rozenberg · Answer

First I would not be so worried about what they do or do not ask, as there is quite a bit that is involved in selecting the right tenant and Fair Housing and Discrimination Laws vary and prohibit certain things in different areas.

I would be more concerned and focused on what their tenant retention and eviction rate is. At the end of the day aren't you more concerned that at the end of whatever process they have they are putting the right person in your investment property and that person is taking care of your investment property, and that person is paying their rent? Thus giving you your desired return on your investment (ROI).

To me I don't care what they ask as long as they are not violating the tenants rights by rental discrimination which is the highest type of discrimination in the U.S. and they have a proven business model.

If I were searching for firms I would be asking for some statistical data of:

Vacant days on market

Eviction Rate

Vacancy Rate

Percent of rent collected

Tenancy retention rate

Tenancy lease renewal rate

As a business owner, which yes you are if you own even a single property is having the right team in place and letting them do their job as long as its tested, measured and verified by proof.

Just my opinion as an investor and owner of a property management company.

Fred Heller · Answer

Credit/background screening is a revenue source. Whether you pass the screen or not, the PM gets to keep the $50 or whatever the application fee is.

Personally I don't like wasting my own time, and I don't like taking other people's money if they're not going to pass the screening. So I always ask a few simple questions to make sure they will meet the screening criteria. I also include a sheet with the credit screening criteria along with the application. And where practicable, I'll include the screening criteria in the rental posting, or at least say something like "must have good credit." I give them every opportunity to self-disqualify themselves before they submit the application.

What's amazing to me is the number of people out there who are oblivious regarding their credit scores or what's in their credit report.

Nathan P. · Answer

Good points that I hadn't really thought about. I'm not sure whether it is a strong or soft rental market right now either so it might have been an effective strategy.

Michele Fischer · Answer

While pre-screening is a great tool, I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that they are bad property managers.  Maybe they are being careful about discrimination claims.  Maybe they are guiding you to a date/time that is close other appointments.  Maybe they have a low paid person to show units, so it is cost effective and efficient.  Maybe they are building their funnel of interested renters even if this property doesn't work out.

In a strong market and/or a higher end market you can weed more applicants out with pre-screening.  In a soft rental market or low income housing it is better to try to get as many applications to choose from as you can.

Why aren't property managers screening me as a tenant when I call?

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