One of my tenants is getting married. Do you do a background check? simply amend the lease and have them sign (they are over 18) Thoughts?

@Steve S. Do the check, give the rent a minor bump, be specific that it is for increased wear and tear etc. And start now on thinking about your plan when they have a litter of kids. During your screening of the new one you may find out they’ve got absolute loser family members that’ll end up squatting or similar. More knowledge is better than less knowledge. When this situation comes up without a marriage, ie: “hey my gf wants to move in!” I always remind them that when Susie Q comes home and little Johnny is making some love with his ex that if I have to reprogram the lock when they split it costs them the $125 written in the lease. I also point this out at move in to encourage them NOT to hand the code out to friends, especially 1 night friends.

@Steve S. We do the app and CC and BG check we have them sign a lease and we up the rent 40 dollars. You have to know WHO is in your property to protect yourself and your tenants.

Where they could fail is on the criminal check. For income the current tenant qualified on their own, so that shouldn't be a problem. If they fail the check, deal with that bridge if you come to it.

This is going to be area specific. Some places you cannot disallow a new spouse to move in. Besides, the reality is that unless you are prepared for the current tenant to move out, there is no reason to care about the credit score of the new spouse. Only thing you should care about is that they pass a background check. A credit score of 500 and a recent bankruptcy isn't going to bother me. Being on probation for recent sex crimes is.

What if they fail the background check?

Do the background check and if they pass, add them to the lease. When you amend the lease make sure you state that the deposit was paid by person A, so if they break up and move out, the deposit is not returned to the new person.

How do you handle a fiancé or new spouse moving in on lease?How do you handle a fiancé or new spouse moving in on lease?

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How do you handle a fiancé or new spouse moving in on lease?

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