All Forum Posts by: Maria G.

I have been accepting applications via zillow, zumper, and rentscreener. I think zillow costs $30 and rentscreener $40. I forgot how much is zumper.

In case it is useful, these are my minimum requirements, which I list on the ad: 

income is 3x rent ** credit score 650 or higher ** no evictions ** clean background

In principle, I wouldn't go for her. My minimum requirement for credit score is 650.

Now, if you don't have other prospects and really liked her, I would just have a conversation with her. It has proved useful to me recently to make a final decision. I would say: "I see some late payments..." and "I see a DWI..." Then you can go from there.

I would not rent to her without a conversation that made me feel better. You don't want to find yourself in six months saying: "I knew it, I knew I shouldn't have done it." You need peace of mind.

@Brandon P.: Sorry to hear about your loss. What a terrible thing to happen! My home is 3 hours from the fire and I see the skies every day... Fortunately, I don't have experience with it. I just wanted to offer support. I hope others have answers for you.

Can someone help me with section 11 (maintenance use and reporting)? I used to write something very basic like "tenant shall water the garden" (11.B), but I would like to know what kinds of things should go under section D. Is there any guide for landlords on how to use that section well?

Thank you!

Thanks, everyone for your responses. I talked to my candidate today and made it clear that for the current lease, there would only be him and his younger son. And I didn't need to bring that up at all, it was more a matter of him sharing that his (older) son's credit score is 505 when I asked why he (applicant) was denied for a different property. He had sent me his credit report run by a property management company and I could see that his son was in there, and I could also see a "doesn't meet requirements." So I suspected the son may be the reason why, but I didn't ask him anything, I just let him talk. He said that property management agent had recommended he apply by himself. The son anyway wants to try another area, so it seems the marihuana dilemma is out of the picture by now...

Hello,

I bought my first investment two years ago, which rented out in one day and I had great tenants. They are now downsizing (just moved out) and I am currently working on reading applications to select the next tenants, so I am trying to learn more and improve my process. Here are some questions I have:

1. Do you ask for 2 pay stubs? Do you also ask for tax returns?
2. Do you use references to pick between candidates, or just once you have picked a candidate?
3. Do you talk to work, landlord, and personal references?
4. What kinds of questions do you ask? I have read the usual recommendations (like the ultimate guide, here), but is there a question that proved really useful and you'd recommend using?
5. What do you do if the candidate owned a house before (so there are no landlord references)?
6. Do you take the move-in deposit the day they sign the lease? Do you wait unit the funds clear to sign the lease?
7. A bit more specific one: Would it be OK to write in the lease agreement that no other people from the initial approved ones can be added in the middle of the lease term?

Thank you!

Thanks for your responses.

@Ed Emmons: When you say "see his paperwork," you mean screen him as I screen anyone, right? As for electricity, I don't pay for that, but I am curious to know why consumption would be high. 

@Thomas S.: So everyone in the business smokes? It is then not a prejudice of mine? Is there data?

I have an applicant who would move in with his 13-year-old son and whose other son (a UC Davis graduate) is going to move to a different region (two hours away). He mentioned that if things don't go well for his adult son, he may come join him later on. I know at that point he would need to fill an application, but there was one thing that concerned me (perhaps a prejudice?) and that is, that his son is in the marihuana business. The applicant seems really nice and he didn't need to share his son's business with me, so perhaps he doesn't think there is a problem with it, but I want to get advice from others.

I found posts on growing marihuana in rental's premises, but not just having someone in the business. Any experience?

Thank you!

@Thomas S.: Thanks. How do you check people who come from a divorce? One of my two candidates sold the house in March and he and his wife are trying to work things out, so they want to give each other some time. Since the house sale, he moved with his nephew and niece who were about to have a baby, so he paid them rent. I am not sure how I am going to check his situation... As for work, he's been 15 years with the same employer (he's an athletics director), income is 2.6 to 1, his credit score is 650 (he said he had some issues with Comcast when he sold the house, but he's clearing that).

Hi Colleen, I have been managing a rental that I bought two years ago and that is pretty exactly "just under two hours" from me. It has been no problem. The main issue I had to deal with was a broken sink two weeks after they moved in (faulty house sale inspection!) and a broken water heater that I needed to replace. Now, this is what I would advice:

- Choose your tenants really well. I did. They just moved out, and they have kept the property amazingly well. You can't tell someone lived there 25 months. They communicated well with me over text and email (phone if needed).

- Make sure everything is in working order before your tenants move in. I painted the whole house and put new flooring in when I bought the house.