Oklahoma City, OK · Member since 2017 · 125 posts · 14 votes
Hi all, love this forum...
My biggest and immediate question is. Why am I being charged a fee when I only have one property listed right now? I did list one a month ago and took it down like Feb 3rd or so. Is that why?
Do I have to use their rent payment service? We like to do that ourselves
Can I upload my own lease and all my addendums (smoking, pet, etc.)?
Is there anything missing from the application, background and credit check you wish it had? I assume it does not call past landlords for you, lol, but what does it lack? Right now I use an actual property mgmt company for my background checks, and I like to do a lot of the tenant research and legwork because I want to know who I am getting.
Zillow now charges in some markets to list rental properties. You may not have been charged last time either because: 1) they weren’t charging in your market at that time yet, or 2) your first listing with them is free even once they do begin charging.
To answer your other questions:
- No, you do not have to use their rent payment service.
- Yes, you can upload your own lease.
- No, they’re not going to call prior landlords, but you can see what the credit/background check does include here: Zillow Rental Applications FAQ
I only use Zillow to list properties for rent (I don’t use their other services). And, in my market, it works great for that. Some people have a problem with Zillow charging to list rentals on their site. I don’t because I don’t expect a business to provide me a service for free. (Though obviously I liked it better when it was free.)
Plus, in my market, Zillow just works better than the other available options. However, if you don’t want to pay, just know that there are other free options out there (e.g. Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, etc).
How well those other options work (or even if they work) in your particular market is something you’ll have to figure out if you decide to go down that road.
I have used it in the past and generally liked it. You don't have to use their payment services or lease if you don't want, it is just a feature there if you do. The reason you are being charged is because this is your second listing, on the areas that they started charging they gave you the first one for free but charge 10/week for any additional. There is a lot of debate here on that but in my area that is where most of the qualified leads come from so I really can't afford not to pay it. The credit check is pretty generic but does give you a score and it has found criminal and eviction records for me in the past. Overall I have been happy with it and use it for rent collection but prefer a paper lease we sign when I get the deposit and first months rent. I do like however for the tenants it is the cheapest I have found and the tenant has access to their report for 30 days so they can send it through Zillow to other landlords that use the service. I think next time though I am going to try RentPrep as I think their report is a bit more detailed and they offer civil search screening which interests me. I've never seen one of their reports though and they don't have a sample one on their website to know but it also gets pretty good reviews on here and I feel may be worth a shot. If nothing else its a middle finger to Zillow for charging me to list, they made way more money on me by screening.
Thanks to both of you for the insights. I am listed on zillow, $10 a week is no too bad, I am not surprised they are doing it, no brainer. Just thought you could have one free at a time.
I use apartments. com for listings as they have given me the most leads. I also put them on local Facebook groups. I used TransUnion SmartMove for the credit and background checks. I just have to submit the tenant's email address and they email them, get payment from them, and process the credit and background checks. I use QuickBooks for my bookkeeping, so I just set up automatic invoices that go out to all of my tenants on the 24th of each month. Most of them just click on the email and pay right through there. The thing I didn't like about Zillow was that they made people pay and submit the background/credit check along with the application. I don't make people pay to apply. I get the applications, check the info and references, and then send the email for the background/credit check if I have chosen them over the other applicants. Best wishes! :)