Being a landlord is a risky endeavor. Not only do you have the monthly headache of collecting rent from stubborn tenants, but you might also happen to accept the application of an individual with a shady background.
It is why tenant screening is a standard practice in the industry, even though, technically, you are not allowed to discriminate against someone on account of their previous criminal record. However, the stakes are so high that you could not afford to.
If you are a landlord, and this is the first time you encountered the term, tenant screening is the process of running a background check on the candidate. The purpose is to find the perfect tenant who pays on time, does not give you any problems, and makes sure to take care of your property while they are temporarily residing there.
What are all the things covered in the Background Check Report?
A tenant screening may cost you from $35 up to $100 per report, which already covers the application and the screening fee.
Just to give you an idea, the Tenant Union of Washington State said that among the areas to be checked include:
- The tenant’s credit history
- The rental history
- Police and court records
- Social Security Number
- Records of evictions
- Employment history
- Proof of income
How Long Does the Tenant Screening Report Arrive?
The turnaround time for the results of the tenant screening varies, depending on how comprehensive the report would be.
For example, if you only want to verify the previous address given by the applicant, as well as their credit history, you can get the report within 24 hours. When you are looking for the criminal history of the tenant, you can also secure the results quickly.
For instance, a criminal background check will take between one business day and three days. You can get the credit report literally within seconds or almost immediately.
But if you are trying to check their rental history and their employment history, it may take some time to get the results. It is because the app or service provider will first send a verification form from your current employer and previous employers to verify if the information you provided is accurate. As you might expect, if you lied on your application in this part of the process, you will likely be rejected.
The problem is that the verification process is outside the control of the app or the service provider. They will typically wait on the response of your current or former employer. Also, there is no telling when the previous landlord will pick up the phone to vet the information. In fact, there is no assurance that they will cooperate at all. However, if the potential tenant has an eviction notice, it will likely show up in the tenant screening report.
So, to sum up, depending on the type of information you want, you can receive the tenant screening results within one business day or otherwise which might take up to a month.
Unfortunately, you cannot speed up the process since you are at the mercy of bureaucracy, especially if you are getting the documents from government offices. However, it will be worth the wait when you happen to get the perfect client as a result.
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