Can I Select My Own Tenants?

Many owners want to be a part of the tenant selection process, to ensure their property is only rented to individuals who are responsible, will care for the property, and will pay their rent on time. We understand that renting out a property can bring up many questions and concerns, the most common being around tenant selection. Below we share a few key reasons that this process is often misunderstood, and why we do not allow owners to select a specific individual to occupy the unit.

The process doesn’t really involve selection at all.

When a new rental property owner envisions the leasing process, or finding, choosing and then moving in a tenant, they may picture meeting all of the applicants, reviewing their backgrounds, and then choosing the individual(s) they feel the most comfortable with renting their property.

When things are done correctly, this is not quite the case. While a number of people will likely view the property, and there may be multiple applicants for a single property, we aren’t truly selecting an individual. We are reviewing the applications until one application meets all of the listed criteria. Once an applicant has qualified for the property, that is the individual who is “selected.”

There are only a number of factors that can be included as criteria for tenant, and any personal preferences or gut feelings based on interaction are not allowed.  

It is safer for the property owner to avoid the leasing process.

You can see that there may be more guidelines in place for this process than many would initially suspect. You can read a description of landlord unsuspectingly violating fair housing guidelines during this process, here.

The Fair Housing Act lists protections for individuals who fall into protected classes. This includes race or color, sex, familial status, national origin, religion, and disability. Fair housing laws can vary depending on location or a number of other factors, and can change or have updates. You also cannot discriminate against some based off of their employment or age (once they are a legal adult).

Because selecting a tenant based on a gut-feeling or personal comfortability often crosses the boundary into a protected class, it is much safer for owners to avoid being a part of this process.

Violating fair housing laws can result in costly fines, including:

• For a first violation, the landlord can receive up to a $21,663 penalty
• For a second violation within the next five years, the landlord can receive up to a $53,157 penalty
• For a third violation within seven years, the landlord can receive up to a $108,315 penalty

Although exceptions occur, proper vetting reduces the likelihood of a poor tenant experience.

The above information may make prospective rental owners understand why it’s best to not be involved in the process, but it may not make them more comfortable with allowing someone else to handle the process.

There are a number of ways that we vet applicants to ensure they will be a great fit for the property. Although it is always possible that issues could arise with any tenant, vetting drastically reduces the likelihood of it happening. The criteria for applicants to qualify for a unit should set owners’ minds at ease.

We conduct a background check with all applicants. We also ensure they have a source of income, meet the income requirements, and we review their rental history. We utilize top industry programs to verify information, including a program that eliminates the possibility of submitting fake paystubs or misrepresenting income information by connecting to their bank.

Only .01% of our tenants are evicted.

Although this number differs depending on the management company you select, only .01% of Rincon Property Management’s tenants have needed to be evicted. We also return, on average, 83% of all damage deposits, which shows that comprehensive vetting often prevents the need to evict, or withhold deposits for significant tenant damages. If you are currently vetting companies, it may be in your best interest to ask them about how often this occurs at their company. This is likely directly related to how comprehensive their vetting process is.

Because it is so rare for one of our tenants to need to be evicted or for significant damages beyond normal wear and tear to be present, we are confident that any tenant who moves into one of our properties has met or exceeded the qualifications for the property. We are also always looking for ways to update technology surrounding the vetting process, to ensure we are ahead of the curve and can identify false information from the beginning.

Overall, you can see why it is in the best interest of the property owner to remove themselves from this process. Because we always have our clients’ best interests in mind, our dedicated team members handle the process from start to finish. We always keep owners up-to-date on what is going on and the status of the leasing process.

If you are interested in learning more about our vetting process or have any questions regarding leasing, you can reach out to us by filling out a contact form, here.