All Forum Posts by: Tom Ott

 Best of luck Angela! I'm sure you will do very well in the real estate investing world!

Great job, Lane! It sounds like you got it all figured out. I wish you the best in your investing!

Alex makes a great point! You should always accept multiple applications. I've had people call me the DAY OF the lease signing to say they changed their mind. Sometimes you never know what other people have going on in their lives. 

I hope this helped!

Hello Steven,

This is a great question! I have been in this situation before. You get a couple of tenants and they all fit what you are looking for, but you only have one unit! 

Unfortunately, I do not recommend trying to "sweeten" the deal by convincing them to stay longer. Probably the best way to do it, would be to really look at everyone's background/credit and see who is the BEST fit. 

You'll probably want the applicant who has the best ability to pay the rent on time. However, if they are all exactly the same, you might want to see who can move in the soonest. It would be great to get them in ASAP so whomever can move in the fastest and pay their security deposit might be the best fit.

To be honest, if they are all way to similar to tell the difference try to reevaluate their employment/credit. You'll have to be particular and see who will ultimately be the BEST to pay their bills and are hopefully a good tenant.

Please let me know if you have any questions, I do see this all of the time.

Great questions! First thing you need to do is have them sign an authorization form, which allows you to look up their credit report and do a background check. Never simply look at a credit SCORE, but make sure you look at the whole REPORT. Someone could have a good score, but owe a lot of money on collections. (I know, but it happens)

Analyze their credit report and if you feel comfortable, do a background check and make sure their criminal history checks out.

Another key factor is employment history. Make sure they have a job of course! You also want to make sure they have had the job for more than a few days. Remember their ability to keep their job (or have a steady income) will directly effect their ability to pay the rent.

Always fill out a hard copy of the application. We let people apply online or in person. If they apply in person we simply input the data ourselves. It is always handy to have the hard copy when needed.

We always have them submit pay-stubs. 2 - 3 most recently ones give us the information we need. You want to use that information to check to make sure they have enough money to pay their bills, including the rent. We don't normally ask for a license until they are signing documents, but that might be different depending on your state.

Please let me know if you have any questions! I handle o a lot of tenant screening.

Hello Angela,

First off, I would like to say welcome to the world of REI! It is not an easy leap to make, but you did it! Congratulations!

Don't be nervous about it. You have tons of resources at your disposal, especially with BP. Anytime you have a question, just post it! You'll be surprised how many people respond with valuable answers. 

In terms of advertisement. Some good (free) places to start are Craigslist or Facebook. Make an account with your company (or yours) name and try posting it. Facebook it great too because people might even re-share it. 

Craigslist is full of people looking to rent! Make you you always do the proper screening once someone wants to apply.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Hi Lane,

This is a great question! It seems it has already been pointed out, but I wanted to say it again. Every adult in the home should be on the lease. Regardless of state law, the last thing you want is an adult living in the home who does not have to adhere to the lease.

Think about it, they would be able to do anything they really want without any sort of legal recourse. You always want to make sure anyone over 18 is on the lease and must follow the same rules, no exceptions.

In terms of applications, we like to have a section where the adults can list their children in the home. Just names and birth dates. Depending on your state/city it might be required to disclose how many people live in the rental unit (regardless of age.) Most of the cities surrounding Cleveland require everyone in the home be listed on the occupancy permit application.

In terms of running background reports for teenagers. That is up to you. Sometimes there is a difference among state laws, and I an unsure of Florida.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

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Hello Patrick,

This is a great question! It can be hard to do a background check on your own and when your in a tight spot like this one.

About specifics in Tucson, I'm not too sure what you are referring to, but there are many online background check systems you can use. You will want to find one that can do a background check and a credit report. You want to make sure you EVERYTHING before you let them live with you. This is a very important thing, because you will be sharing a place with this person, not just renting to them.

Some things I like to keep in mind are:

Have them sign an authorization form, which allows you to look up their credit report and do a background check. Never simply look at a credit SCORE, but make sure you look at the whole REPORT. Someone could have a good score, but owe a lot of money on collections. (I know, but it happens)

Analyze their credit report and if you feel comfortable, do a background check and make sure their criminal history checks out.

Another key factor is employment history. Make sure they have a job of course! You also want to make sure they have had the job for more than a few days. Remember their ability to keep their job (or have a steady income) will directly effect their ability to pay the rent.

We always have them submit pay-stubs. 2 - 3 most recently ones give us the information we need. You want to use that information to check to make sure they have enough money to pay their bills, including the rent. We don't normally ask for a license until they are signing documents, but that might be different depending on your state.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

 Hello Chris,

This is a great question, and one that I deal with a lot. Rent increases is always important to keep up with the market around your units. Understandably, tenants do not like to receive a notice stating their rent is going up by $150! I think this might have to be a case-by-case situation.

If the tenant has been great and they are willing to do a raise, but not all the way up to $800, then maybe you should take it. Some tenants might be okay with the full raise, others won't.

If they are the type of tenant that causes problems, then tell them there is nothing you can do. Is it a very popular area? How easy would it be to replace a tenant? 

To be fair that is a very large jump, so maybe you should only do a partial increase. Then the following year increase it again. 

As tenants move out and you do the increases, eventually you can get the rent up to where you want.

Please let me know if you have any questions!