All Forum Posts by: Anna Sagatelova

@Karen F. even if you don't charge a fee, if you do run a credit/background check and use that information (credit, residential, or criminal) from that report in making your adverse decision, you are required to report it. This is per Fair Credit Reporting Act - FTC has all the information.

@John Cho it's a shame that they dropped the ball after 9 years of good service. Who knows what is going on internally there, but I agree that you need to find a new PM. However, I would recommend doing so before terminating your current contract. Even if the current PM is unresponsive, are you prepared to personally handle a maintenance emergency call in the middle of the night, if it arises? Do you really want your tenants to have your personal contact information? Even if you hire a new PM in a few weeks, your phone number won't magically be erased on the tenants' end. Unfortunately, a lot of tenants take advantage of transitions in management and having the owner's direct contact.

It will probably take your PM 30 days to cease all activity and close your account anyway. Start looking for a new PM immediately and ask how soon they can take over. As soon as you find a good fit, give your current PM notice and assign rent collection to the new PM.

Good luck!

Like others, I recommend to keep it simple; a lot of your list can be summed up as "incomplete application", "false information", and "did not meet criteria".

If any of that criteria came from the background/credit check, there is a special disclosure form you have to provide and check off the appropriate boxes.

It is far more important to be clear and unambiguous in your screening criteria, so they know what they're getting measured against before they pay you a nonrefundable application fee.

If your LL denied 3 prior candidates based on credit, they should not approve a 4th applicant with same/similar credit situation. If there were other factors that led to the prior 3 being denied, this may be ok, otherwise you could be looking at a potential Fair Housing claim if those credit standards are not evenly applied to all applicants.

What is the result you are hoping for?

It's really unfortunate that your former PM did not enforce standards that they promised you (or didn't document attempts at enforcement).

However, you are where you are now. Is the $50 late fee and the dog etc worth the cost of eviction and vacancy and turnover repairs? Will they do more damage if they stay through the term of their lease? Usually the damage is already done, and removing them early via eviction doesn't really help you rein in your turnover costs (unless they get behind on the rent, then of course it makes a big difference to your bottom line).

Sometimes, it is a better business decision not to enforce the lease to a T if it's going to cause you premature vacancy at an inconvenient time.

You should do a cost/benefit analysis of all the factors you are listing to decide if pursuing eviction is going to be financially beneficial in the long run.

It's a good tool when used in combination with other rent comp techniques and sources.

@Cameron Tope we look at the overall score as well as history and number of delinquent accounts, severity and type of those accounts. For example, someone can have a very low score but due to an old medical debt, or the same exact score but due to recent unpaid car note and utility bills. The former would score higher in our analysis (Higher score = better qualified).

I think this would depend on your city ordinances, and I don't think that relates to the original question. He is talking about screening a tenant applicant with an animal. Fair Housing law controls the rules regarding renting/screening in this case, whether you have a SFR or a 100-unit apartment. ADA doesn't tell you who you have to lease to and what are permissible questions/documentation for this purpose.

HUD recently put out a very helpful clarifying memo on the matter.

Yes, that is the commercial aspect of the business though. 

NARPM is a great resource, but make sure to also check with the Real Estate Licensing Board in the state you plan to operate in; they will have information about what is licensed activity.