Require occupants 18+ years or older to fill out application?

[Emory Clayton]

I'm trying to understand the reasons....pros/cons.... to requiring occupants 19+ years or older to fill out application? In my state you have to be 19+ years of age or older to enter into a legally binding contract. I get having to require the tenant who reaches out to fill out and pay the application fee. My question is around requiring other occupants of the house who are not paying the rent to fill out an application. Is this because it allows me to further vet the occupants as a whole? Say for example the paying tenant checks out, but the spouse is a convicted murderer. Or maybe the husband and wife check out, but they have a 20 yr old son who lives with them who has a crime sheet a mile long?

[Erick Armando Gonzalez]

Requiring all occupants aged 18 and older to fill out an application serves as a way to further vet the individuals who will be residing in your property, even if they aren't directly responsible for paying rent. Here are some pros and cons:

Pros:

1. Safety and Security: Requiring background checks for all adult occupants helps ensure that everyone living on your property has been screened for potential risks, such as criminal history. This can protect your property and other tenants from potential harm.
2. Tenant Accountability: Even if someone isn't on the lease, they can still impact your property (e.g., damages, noise complaints). By vetting all adult occupants, you can have a clearer picture of who is living in your property and establish a sense of responsibility.
3. Compliance and Transparency: Having everyone fill out an application ensures compliance with housing regulations and avoids any legal gray areas. If all adults are screened, you can avoid potential legal issues down the road, especially in cases where one occupant engages in illegal activities or violates lease terms.
4. Financial Stability: Screening all adult occupants also allows you to assess the household's overall financial situation. Even if only one person is responsible for paying rent, knowing that other occupants aren't financially strained can reduce the risk of rent defaults.

Cons:

1. Potential Tenant Pushback: Some applicants may view this requirement as invasive, especially if they believe that non-paying occupants should not be subjected to the same level of scrutiny as the primary leaseholder. This could lead to friction during the application process or deter some potential tenants.
2. Increased Administrative Work: Requiring multiple applications per household increases your workload, as you'll need to process more information, run additional background checks, and review more documents. It can also increase the time it takes to approve or deny an application.
3. Application Costs: Requiring all adult occupants to apply can increase the application costs, which may be seen as an additional financial burden on the prospective tenants. This might reduce the pool of interested renters, especially for families with adult children or multiple adults sharing a residence.

In summary, requiring all occupants aged 18+ to fill out an application allows you to vet the entire household and mitigate risks, but it could also complicate the application process and cause pushback. Balancing safety and practicality is key.

[Emory Clayton]

Quote from @Erick Armando Gonzalez:

Requiring all occupants aged 18 and older to fill out an application serves as a way to further vet the individuals who will be residing in your property, even if they aren't directly responsible for paying rent. Here are some pros and cons:

Pros:

1. Safety and Security: Requiring background checks for all adult occupants helps ensure that everyone living on your property has been screened for potential risks, such as criminal history. This can protect your property and other tenants from potential harm.
2. Tenant Accountability: Even if someone isn't on the lease, they can still impact your property (e.g., damages, noise complaints). By vetting all adult occupants, you can have a clearer picture of who is living in your property and establish a sense of responsibility.
3. Compliance and Transparency: Having everyone fill out an application ensures compliance with housing regulations and avoids any legal gray areas. If all adults are screened, you can avoid potential legal issues down the road, especially in cases where one occupant engages in illegal activities or violates lease terms.
4. Financial Stability: Screening all adult occupants also allows you to assess the household's overall financial situation. Even if only one person is responsible for paying rent, knowing that other occupants aren't financially strained can reduce the risk of rent defaults.

Cons:

1. Potential Tenant Pushback: Some applicants may view this requirement as invasive, especially if they believe that non-paying occupants should not be subjected to the same level of scrutiny as the primary leaseholder. This could lead to friction during the application process or deter some potential tenants.
2. Increased Administrative Work: Requiring multiple applications per household increases your workload, as you'll need to process more information, run additional background checks, and review more documents. It can also increase the time it takes to approve or deny an application.
3. Application Costs: Requiring all adult occupants to apply can increase the application costs, which may be seen as an additional financial burden on the prospective tenants. This might reduce the pool of interested renters, especially for families with adult children or multiple adults sharing a residence.

In summary, requiring all occupants aged 18+ to fill out an application allows you to vet the entire household and mitigate risks, but it could also complicate the application process and cause pushback. Balancing safety and practicality is key.

 Thank you Erick for all of that great information! One thing I didn't even consider was having a background check done, but not having their name on the lease. I always associated the background/credit check with them being on the lease, but I guess this doesn't have to be the case. 

Another thing your response got me thinking about was having only a back ground check done on the additional occupants and not the credit check. I maybe would do this to alleviate some of the financial burden put on the tenant in the application process. Like you said, Balancing safety and practicality is key.

I'm using RentRedi's autotenant screening feature, which includes Income & Asset Verification and Background check as part of the application process. Total cost to tenant = $90

[Erick Armando Gonzalez]

We use ZILLOW Rental Manager, Tenant screening reports are free for landlords. Renters pay a $35 tenant screening (which includes Income & Asset Verification and Background check) and application fee, which allows them to apply to your listing and an unlimited number of participating rentals for 30 days.

[Emory Clayton]

I will look into that. I might have the primary tenant use the RentRedi process, and have the any other tenants 19+ use the Zillow tenant screening so I can see first hand the difference. Thanks for sharing. 

[Nathan Gesner]

Every adult should be screened and approved by the landlord, then added to the lease. You open yourself up to some major trouble if you don't.

Example 1: 26-year-old female applies. She has a 780 credit score, makes 4x the rent, and everything looks perfect. She's approved and moves in. Three months later, she moves in her "bad boy" boyfriend. Within one month we learn about him because the neighbors complain about heavy visitors at all hours of the night. We find out who he is and discover he has a long rap sheet for drug dealing.

Example 2: Mom wants to rent with her adult son. Mom is going to pay rent. She applies and is approved, but the son is not screened since he won't be paying rent. Four months later the rent is late. Again the next month. Next month rent goes unpaid. We discover mom never moved in and was just applying so her son could sneak in. He is woefully unqualified and we have to terminate the lease.

These are real-world examples from my first year as a landlord. Every tenant should be named on the lease and 100% liable for the terms, whether they pay rent or not.

[Russell Brazil]

Wow. Im completely shocked 18 isnt considered an adult in Alabama. You can die for your country in war, but cant enter a contract in Alabama.