9 Questions to Ask Before Accepting a New Tenant

Choosing to accept a tenant isn’t a black-and-white decision, especially if you’ve got a few groups to pick from. Of course, you need to verify everyone’s income and run credit checks to confirm they are financially fit to rent your property...but what other questions should you be asking? The right questions (and the answers you receive) give insight into why the group is applying for your property and how likely they are to treat it with respect. These conversations aren’t always easy, but don’t be shy to get the answers you need and make an informed choice! Land the best tenants starting here:

1. How soon are you ready to start your lease?
   This question is always a great place to start. The prospective tenant’s response is important because it will help you determine if they are a good fit for acceptance. If your unit is vacant already, but they don’t want to move in for 45 days, are they the best fit? Maybe not. By that same token, if someone answers this question with, “I need to move in tomorrow,” you should have eyes wide open. Maybe they’re in a unique situation where renting immediately makes sense, but it could also be they are hiding an ongoing eviction. In a perfect world, you’re looking for someone to start their lease on a date that minimizes your vacancy.
   
   
2. What’s your reason for moving?
   Getting an answer to this question is also helpful when deciding whether or not to accept a tenant. There are plenty of reasons why someone needs to move, it could be a relocation for work or that the family is expecting another child and needs more space. Whatever it may be, understanding their reason can help you choose the best fit for your property. Let’s say that you prefer long-term tenants (2+ years), but you show your property to a nice group of traveling nurses. They are interested and their income and credit are great, but their work moves them to a new city every 6 months. In this instance, would this group really be your best match?
   
   
3. Have you ever been evicted from a previous residence?
   This one is simple and straight to the point, there’s no need to sugar coat it. Knowing whether someone has been evicted before is an important piece of determining whether they will be a good tenant in the future. No eviction history is preferred of course, but an honest answer about the past can also give you insight into your potential tenant. If someone had an eviction 10 years ago but stellar rental history since, they are probably still worth your consideration. Don’t miss out on a perfectly good tenant by neglecting to understand their past.
   
   
4. Have you ever broken a lease before?
   Leases aren’t meant to be broken. Tenants sign on for a specific term and are expected to stay throughout. That said, sometimes there are circumstances outside of a person’s control, like a military relocation. That’s why it’s critical to ask if they’ve ever broken a lease agreement before! If they have, find out exactly why they did it and what the consequences were? Was the previous landlord left uninformed or unpaid?
   
   Hearing “yes” in response to this question may be an immediate reason for denial, but understanding more may also allow you to see that they are actually a good fit for your property.
   
   
5. Have you ever filed a suit against a landlord?
   Believe it or not, there are tenants out there who just like to sue. In the office, we have a funny nickname for them, “serial-suers.” These “serial-suers” are tenants that will create an incident or take advantage of one to file suit against their landlord (often over minor or unwarranted things). To protect yourself, ask your prospective tenant if they’ve ever filed suit against a previous owner. If they say no, that’s okay, but if they indicate that they have, you may want to ask for details if they will provide it.
   
   In a recent property management nightmare, the same tenant tried to file three slip and fall lawsuits against the same property owner within two years. Maybe there are some spiteful owners out there icing up their walkways to create safety hazards, but in this instance, the landlord had on-site snow removal and de-icing the morning of any storm! They have since learned that this tenant has done the same thing at previous rental properties. Wouldn’t that have been helpful to know in advance?
   
   
6. Have you ever been convicted of a crime?
   You’ll want to run a full credit check and eviction search on any candidate, but don’t forget to ask about criminal convictions for yourself too! While there is no perfect timeline for forgiving a crime, you want to know who’s moving in and what kind of behavior they’ve exhibited in the past. Don’t hesitate to find out what you can about a person’s criminal history. At Robert C. White & Company, we make a point to not only process a criminal background check, but also ask the applicant to give their own details. Anyone that gives a different story to their actual background check is automatically going to be denied. Get the info you need to make the best choice.

7. Will others be living with you?
Don’t be caught by surprise after move-in day for your new tenants! Ask them clearly in advance who will be living in the unit (spouses, children, elderly parents) and set clear guidelines for guests. You don’t want unwarranted guests to cause damage or create a disturbance for other neighbors, so set the expectations in advance and pre-screen everyone that would be living in the rental property.

8. What kind of pets do you have?
Do not forget to ask about pets! If a renter has them, what breed/size (if applicable) and what veterinary history does the pet have? Animals can cause damage to your units and also cause disturbance or danger to other tenants/neighbors. Screen them carefully and ask about any issues at previous rental properties too!

If you have a 500 square foot studio available on the 4th floor of a small multi-family, would it really make sense to accept a tenant with two large German Shepherds? Probably not! Get any and all information on pets before you decide to move forward with an applicant. This protects you and your investment.

9. How did you find this rental?
Finally, if you’re marketing units on your own, you’ll want to ask how people came to find your listing. Getting an understanding of which marketing channels work best for you will only make listing the property more efficient. If you knew that all of your quality tenants in the past 5 years came through Zillow, why bother advertising anywhere else?

FINAL THOUGHTS
Picking the best fit for tenancy isn’t easy, but asking these questions gives you more critical information to work with. Nine questions to help protect your investment? Sounds like a no-brainer. Keep reading to learn more through our simple tenant screening guide.