Landlord Reference Screenings
The fact that an applicant looks good on the submitted application form does not guarantee you’ve found a good tenant. Being in a hurry to offer tenancy without conducting all necessary tenant screenings can prove foolish. The value of a comprehensive tenant screening process should not be underestimated. Without adequate tenant screenings a landlord places his business at risk and fails in his duty of care to his tenants.
Reference checking with previous landlords is an essential tenant screening. There is no better source of direct information regarding a former tenant’s (now your applicant) interactions with a landlord and neighboring tenants.
A landlord wants a stable, responsible tenant who is ready and willing to pay rent as agreed, maintain the rental premises to acceptable standards, and conduct himself as a good neighbor. In checking with previous landlords, do the references characterize the applicant as meeting these qualities?
If past behaviors give indications of expected future behaviors, then past rental behaviors are key to risk assessment of a future tenancy. Former landlords can provide the type of information needed to assess potential risk. While the applicant’s interview and his application information may preliminarily qualify him to rental standards, details of a previous tenancy as provided by the landlord may tell a different story.
Reference checking is a simple step but some landlords skip over this critical screening, thinking it unnecessary if the credit report is satisfactory. Some applicants hope that a landlord will be too busy to check rental references and the applicant can slide by, therefore avoiding a negative reference or calling attention to the fact that he is being evicted. Calling landlord references to determine whether the applicant satisfactorily fulfilled his lease obligations is a business safeguard. Failing to conduct all due diligence on applicants has the potential for claims of liability and negligence.
Current Landlord
An applicant may request that the current landlord not be contacted. The applicant may not have given notice or may not want the current landlord to know he is looking. There is also the possibility that the applicant thinks the current landlord will give unfavorable information, which may or may not be justified. While the request is understandable, the landlord should adhere to his stated tenant screening policies. If one exception is made, other exceptions might follow. However, the timing of the decision to contact the current landlord could depend upon whether the applicant meets other qualification criteria. If the applicant fails to meet minimum criteria there is no need to continue the process. If the applicant meets criteria, the current landlord should be contacted. Any information obtained from the landlord interview would be analyzed with information obtained from other screening reports for final evaluation.
No Previous Rental History
An applicant applying for his first rental does not have a rental history to check, but that does not mean the applicant is automatically disqualified from renting or potentially less qualified than a tenant with years of rental history. A landlord must look to other references to qualify the applicant. Commonly these other types of references are work references and personal references. Standard tenant screenings for credit and background checks are still conducted in accordance with applicable laws.
Former Landlords
If the applicant has been a renter for several years, calling former landlords may provide more honest answers to questions about rental behaviors. The tenant moved on but his records and his reputation likely remained with the landlord.
While some former landlords could be hesitant to provide detailed tenant information due to privacy concerns, a landlord should be able to confirm dates of tenancy, rental amount, and the security deposit amount.
Reference Questions
Applicants wanting to withhold rental history may try to use friends or family members as landlord references, provide false or misleading street addresses, or aliases. A landlord calling on reference checks must verify the identity of the reference, the rental address, and confirm the full name of the applicant to the full name of the former tenant. Verification of applicant identity is critical if the applicant has a common surname or generational suffix. A landlord must vet the same tenant as his applicant.
It is helpful to have the rental application, a written list of questions, and a prepared script available when contacting landlord references.
A customized rental references worksheet might ask questions such as:
- When did the tenant’s lease begin and end?
- What was the amount of monthly rent? What was the security deposit?
- Did the tenant consistently pay the rent on time?
- Did the tenant have roommates that contributed to the monthly rent?
- Did the tenant take good care of the property? Did he leave it clean at move-out?
- Did the tenant cause disturbances or generate complaints from other tenants or property owners?
- Were any legal notices for evictions served?
- Was notice given per the lease agreement?
- Was the full security deposit refunded?
- Is there any other information that I should know before renting to this tenant?
- Would you rent to this tenant again?
Most landlords consider the last question to be the most important question that should be asked of a landlord reference. The answer is a synthesis of the tenancy. The answer provides an opportunity to ask “why” as the final question. The landlord’s answer, whether positive or negative, should be analyzed in context of that landlord-tenant relationship.
Information obtained through landlord references should be assessed against information obtained through other types of tenant screenings. A landlord must keep an open mind regarding any mention of personality conflicts, subjective feelings, or personal preferences as expressed by a former landlord. A positive reference by a former landlord does not necessarily mean a trouble-free tenancy. A decision to offer tenancy must be based on all objective data collected by the landlord’s tenant screening process.
A landlord should make sure there is no rush to judgment without sufficient information and analysis of all screening data. Equally a landlord must be sure there is no unintentional violation of fair housing laws by extending preference, privileges, or waivers of rental policies to certain individuals in certain circumstances. A policy of non-discrimination must apply to each and every applicant so that tenant screenings are conducted in the same manner, in the same way for all applicants.
Checking references with previous landlords is an essential risk assessment tool and perhaps the strongest predictor of an applicant’s future rental behaviors. A landlord must however evaluate an applicant’s qualifications using a variety of tenant screenings, not just one type of assessment. By using multiple types of screenings, if the tenant has been a problem tenant in the past there will likely be red flags that show up in other screenings.