Choosing the right tenant is a hurdle for most landlords. If it’s a landlord’s first time renting or they’re an accidental landlord, they can even disregard the laws involved in tenant screening. For obvious reasons, this can spell trouble for the landlord. They often can even accidentally accept fraud and even bad tenants, which are not uncommon in Houston’s rental industry.
The State of Texas holds many laws that give the landlord the right to exercise specific methods of filtering tenants by using tenant screening. This is all for the safety and security of both tenants and landlords.
In this step-by-step guide, you will learn how to avoid bad tenants and get the right tenants that you deserve.
Know Your Rights:
In the State of Texas, the law is designed to protect both tenants and landlords. The latter must exercise its rights to screen tenants for safety without violating the applicant’s rights. While collecting information, you can and must consider whether the tenant is financially qualified to rent your property.
Perform a Tenant Screening Checklist:
Before conducting tenant screening, you must know things to look for to get a good tenant. This includes criminal history, financial history, identification cards and documents, and even eviction history.
Being thorough can help narrow down potential tenants when the landlord is determining if an applicant is qualified to rent the property. This makes the landlord's selection of tenants easier. Make sure you are following a standardized procedure the same way every time to avoid discriminatory practices.
Tenant’s Basic Information:
In this step, the landlord may learn about the tenant's name, age, nationality, and occupation. This is done via application forms and interviews. Before doing it, the landlord must ask for permission from the tenant. Asking permission ensures that no rights have been bypassed while you are collecting information from applicants.
Verify Tenant's Financial Capabilities:
The landlord must know if the tenant has the financial capability to pay rent. This is done by checking credit records, income statements, and employment history. By doing so, the landlord knows if the tenant has unpaid debts, bankruptcy, or unemployment. The landlord has a right to disqualify the tenant from renting the property if they don’t meet these requirements. You’ll want tenants who are prepared and responsible when it comes time to collect rent.
Criminal Background Checks:
By checking a tenant’s background for criminal activity, you are exercising your right to disqualify their application if proven. This process is not just a formality but a crucial step in promoting transparency and ensuring the safety and security of your property and other tenants in Houston. Doing this makes your tenants feel secure by eliminating applicants with criminal records.
Conduct Tenant’s Identification Check:
The landlord has the right to request tenants' identification cards, particularly government-issued ones. This is to verify the tenant's identity, especially in cases of potential stolen identity or questionable claims. For instance, if a tenant claims to have been assigned by a company to move to Texas for employment, the landlord must collect this documentation. This is to ensure the validity of the tenant's reason for renting and moving to Texas, thereby preventing any potential fraud.
Check Their Eviction History:
By examining the tenant’s eviction history, the landlord can determine if the tenant has been evicted multiple times for reasons such as crime, unpaid rent, or misdemeanor. If the history shows a pattern of consistent eviction reasons, the landlord has the right to reject the tenant’s application to ensure the safety and security of their property.
But First, Disclosure:
Now that the criteria of tenant screening are met and the tenant passed all requirements, you’re ready to proceed forward. But before letting the tenant sign the leasing agreement, the landlord must disclose to the tenant the existing conditions of the property. If anything like a malfunctioning door, leaking pipes, or aesthetic damage is present, this must be disclosed.
Once existing conditions are disclosed, the landlord can now freely offer the tenants the leasing agreement and let them sign it. By making disclosures, the landlord is exercising transparency to tenants, which is favorable in the state of Texas.
Keep The Tenant’s Data:
By proactively maintaining records of tenant documents such as the filled-out tenant’s form, criminal records, financial statements, photocopied identification cards, and eviction history, the landlord demonstrates a high level of preparedness and responsibility. This ensures that you are always ready to provide the necessary information about the tenant in question to other landlords, thereby aiding their tenant screening process.
Be Consistent:
Applying consistent tenant screening processes to all of your tenants is a great thing that a landlord can do to get qualified tenants who pass all imposed requirements. This will create a standard procedure for screening that makes all of your move-ins smoother.
Stay Updated and Proactive:
The laws in Houston can have new additions that bring about positive changes for tenants and landlords. By staying informed and checking the city bulletin boards and the state’s website, you can be among the first to know about these potential benefits. In turn, you’ll have a sense of optimism and hope for the future of property management. You can also try to use modern technology to screen tenants such as sending them tenant screening forms through Google Forms, and remote tenant interviews through Zoom or Google Meet which saves the tenants time and money.
Become Stress-Free in Tenant Screening
Discover the key to stress-free renting with Terra Residential Services! Our comprehensive tenant screening services in ensure your property is in safe hands from day one. By diligently following state guidelines, we meticulously verify backgrounds, assess financial capabilities, and uphold transparency. Stay ahead with Terra’s expert guidance and keep your rental investments secure and profitable.
Ready to find reliable tenants? Contact us today and start your journey with Terra Residential Services!
