In markets where renting an apartment is very difficult because of limited supply, you will need much more than your what you earn and credit score. It’s the same as having a dream job or getting a perfect partner, the process is not easy. People in such markets do all sort of things like renter resume or hiring an agent to take care of the matter and to get passed through the first stage of tough screening process by the Landlord
There is an initial screening that mainly comprise of real estate agent or manager forwarding your application for final screening by the Landlord. This is usually a small question and answer session that determine the fitness of the person as a tenant. If the property manager or agent is satisfied with the answer, he may then move forward to call for your credit score or call your place of employment for verification of your monthly income.
According to the President of Rentec Direct (Nathan Miller), “It is very important to improve your credit score and along with that, to impress your tenant as the market is very competitive these days. By reviewing statistics I came to know that only half of the units we rented were applied for just once. In other half of the case, there were 3.54 applicants per case” Here are some guidelines to help you through your screening process and impress your landlord.
Don’t Lie
Lying will get you nowhere. As discussed earlier, questions and answers are vital to preliminary screenings and managers and landlord will be looking for all verbal and nonverbal cues to gauge how good a tenant you are going to be. Listen to them carefully and give only honest answers because sooner or later they are going find out your situation and that won’t be a favorable for you in any sense.
Don’t complicate things more than they are meant to be
A good example of this case would be when you are applying to be a single tenant. In such cases talking about your significant other will do only harm. In most cases, landlord puts a clause in the statement that list conditions regarding long-term visitors or guests or banning them altogether.
Not talking about such relationships will help you reinforce that you are staying alone and won’t raise any red flags. Sometimes a simple question is asked about whether any relative or acquaintance lives nearby or in the same vicinity, from the sound of it seems to be a very simple question but through this one your potential landlord is gauging whether he will have to worry about only one tenant or two.
There is no harm in providing your social security number to the landlord
This is what happens when you don’t educate yourself enough before taking any important step. Renting a house in a competitive market is not an easy process. Potential tenants need to understand that security screening is a vital part of the overall screening process and the landlord cannot check your credit rating without having your social security number. Identity theft these days have made people extremely careful about sharing their information. But here it’s necessary and part of the process. If you are reluctant to provide your security details it will jeopardize this whole process by raising a big red flag.
The baseline is that the market is very competitive for you to land yourself with a dream house. From landlord’s perspective, he has to be sure that the tenant is financially capable and fit to be a good tenant so as to avoid any hassle in future that could be stressful.
If you’d like to talk more about property management, or you need help with Everest Property Management, please contact us at Everest Realty.
As a top producing Realtor and Property Manager; Terry specializes in sales, extensive construction homes, rentals, REO’s, short sales, and all aspects of Real Estate. After graduating the University of Michigan with a master in MBA, Terry continued his endeavor and now has over 15+ years of experience in the Real Estate world. If there is anything that has to do with Real Estate and sales, you can always be sure of Terry to provide important, specialized knowledge.
