TENANT SELECTION FOR LANDLORDS

Finding the right tenant for your property can seem like a lot of work, but it's crucial for a successful tenancy, especially if you're aiming for a long-term lease. While we can manage the process for you, if you prefer a more hands-on approach, you can follow our guide below to streamline the tenant selection process.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

First impressions count for a lot in the property market, and this is the reason why most landlords like to perform viewings themselves. During a viewing, you can gauge a little bit about your tenants' lifestyles and interests based on their comments while being shown around, and you can also ask about things like work and whether they have children or a partner with who they’ll likely be living with. Taking advantage of a first meeting is really key: at this stage, most tenants will only have a vague idea of whether they’ll like the property and may feel more at ease than in an interview or reference-check situation. Make the most of it while you can!

BASIC INFORMATION 

Before undertaking any formal reference or credit checks you should endeavour to collect some basic information from your tenants. Question your tenant’s current employment situation, their living situation, whether they have children, pets and whether they are smokers. In some cases, such as if your prospective tenant is a smoker or has been unemployed for a long period, they may not be suitable for your property, and you may decide not to proceed to the next stage of the application. In other cases, such as when the tenant has children, it’s a matter of suitability, and this should be discussed further. Landlords are required to avoid discrimination based on age, gender, or disability, so it’s important to ensure that all prospective tenants are treated fairly and equally.

REFERENCE CHECKS

If you’re satisfied with your initial conversations with your tenants, the next step is to put together a reference check. There are two ways you can go about this: you can either do the checks yourself, or you can ask a professional company to secure the references for you. Either way, you need to check that your prospective tenant is indeed who they say they are and, ideally, to get an employer’s reference and a previous landlord’s reference. It’s perfectly possible to do this yourself by asking your tenant for contact information and getting in touch with their referees yourself. Using photo ID and a recent bank statement, you can also get some security about your tenant’s identity. 

A GOOD PROBLEM TO HAVE

In many cases, landlords will actually be faced with a good problem: two prospective sets of tenants who have equally positive credit reports and offer good prospects for your let. The question is, how do you decide between the two?

In this case, it’s good to have a frank conversation with each tenant and let them know the situation. Tenants will be much more open about their intended term if they really want the property. It’s also common that one tenant has another offer elsewhere and can happily back down, making the decision for you.

Tenant screening is a set of hoops to jump through, and if you combine your good judgement about basic lifestyle factors plus a formal reference check and a credit check, you should be in a good position to find the perfect tenants.