Which tenant screening questions do you like to use?

Question

Thinking through the process of screening prospective tenants, and I wanted to get some input from other BP members. What are some good questions to use during the tenant screening process? (ie. non-obvious, trap questions to utilize during the tenant screening process). Would love to hear your ideas, BP Community!

Tracy Minick · Answer

My favorite:  Do you own a vacuum cleaner?

Samantha Decker · Answer

Hi @Rob B. -- I think pre-screening potential tenants is always time well-spent, as you can learn a wealth of information through a 10-15 minute phone call. Assuming you have your "ideal renter criteria" fine tuned and polished, pre-screening questions can help to weed out unqualified applicants. They can also uncover some "not so obvious" signs as well.

Here are some questions I would ask:

• When would you like to move in?
• Do you have pets? If so, how many?
• How long have you lived in your current home/rental?
• Why are you moving?
• How many people will be living in the unit?
• How many people living with you smoke?
• What is your monthly income?
• Have you ever been convicted of a relevant crime? 
• Have you ever been evicted? Why and when?
• Have you ever broken a rental agreement?

While some of these questions are more straightforward than others, you can begin to get a feel for your potential renters motives and if they could be a good fit for your rental property.

I still find it very crucial to conduct a full tenant screening no matter who I choose to rent to, as tenant screening reports can reveal who someone tells me they are from who they really are.

Best of luck!

-Sam

Ken Musial · Answer

I personally don't like pre-screening over the phone as a prospective tenant can say anything they want.  I do check court records for evictions.  If I don't see any, then I set up viewings.  It's at these personal interactions where the prospects are a bit more forth coming and comfortable as well as revealing.  I like to watch if they truly scrutinize the place based on their needs or if they are ready to move in that weekend without barely looking at it (major red flag).  I like to look at their car, see if it's messy, and check their registration/inspection dates.

Annette Schneider · Answer

When phone screening: I like to ask people if they are familiar with the area the apartment is in, it tends to spark a conversation where people reveal things about themselves: good and/or bad. I often catch people in lies about why they are moving or if they have pets, etc.  I don't do this to catch people in a lie, I'm actually making sure they know its not in the more desirable neighborhood next door that shares the same zip code.   Some very busy folks could care less about the area and that's often that's a great thing.  A specialist in medical residency training that rarely home or professional that needs a weeknight apartment but goes home on the weekends. Lots of insights gained with that question.

Rob B. · Answer

lol that's a good one, Tracy!

Which tenant screening questions do you like to use?

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