A question frequently asked by home owners: “What are your criteria when approving applications?” Service Star Realty realizes placing the right tenant in your rental is one of the most important responsibilities we have as property managers: a good tenant will fulfill their lease term, give proper notice and allow us to plan for a shorter vacancy, they care enough about their credit to leave your property in good shape and pay their balance on their way out.
So how do we find the “right tenant” for your property?
Credit Score: Our Ideal applicant has a credit score of 600 or above. Although some people who would be considered “credit challenged” are still great tenants who pay on time, Service Star demands additional Security Deposit from anyone who has a credit score between 500-599. Because of their credit standing, these applicants are considered to be a higher risk. The additional deposit will help cushion the owner in the event something doesn’t go quite as planned. Applicants with an average house hold score below 500 and those with open bankruptcies are turned away.
Residential History:
- Applicants have been known to provide “stellar” rental history by having a friend or family member pose as their previous or current landlord. For this, Service Star digs deep below the surface. We pull tax records from the county assessor’s office in order to find out who the legal owner of their current residence is. If the names do not match, the applicant is automatically disqualified for falsifying information.
- Applicants are also likely to leave an address off of their application if they left on bad terms. To combat this, we have started to gather ALL addresses listed on their credit report and cross reference that with their application. If there are discrepancies, we do our due diligence to find out why those previous addresses may have been hidden from us.
- Any judgments, evictions, and any debt owed to property management companies/landlords over the last four years is an automatic disqualification.
Income Verification: Self-employed applicants have been able to provide proof of income in the past by supplying 6 months’ worth of bank statements. SSR found that some of these applicants were able to increase their high balance by recycling money (withdrawing, then depositing again). We have implemented a new policy to only accept traditional paycheck stubs or the previous year’s tax return.
Criminal History: Or criminal history, or perhaps better named criminal free history, has not changed. We stand firm in our criminal history and make no exceptions to this rule at any time.
Pets: Service Star Realty has an extensive list or restricted breeds that coincide with the breeds that insurance companies exclude from their liability coverage. In order to be sure that someone is not claiming a Pitbull to be a “Mutt,” we demand that the applicant provides pictures of their pet for our records. If a dog has the characteristics of one of the breeds on our restricted list, the applicant is not immediately turned away, but we enlist the owner’s help to make the decision.
Social Media: Today’s generation of renters is known to be heavily involved with social media, almost documenting their every move. To ensure that the probability of our renter’s “personal life” does not contain “wild parties” or illicit drugs, we search for their social media accounts on MySpace.com, FaceBook.com, and Twitter.com. Any mention of illegal drugs is an automatic disqualification.
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