This week we have had two incidences that show how important it is to check tenants backgrounds before you sign on the dotted line.
The first was a tenant we currently have gave notice to vacate (following an 'ugly rent rise'). 'Hooray!' we said at the office, glad to be rid of a grotty tenant who came with the property when we took over management. That's one property we'll be glad to get cleaned up and rented out to a suitable tenant at a much increased weekly rental. However, we had not heard a peep from any prospective landlords asking about their suitability as tenants. Not one. Well, good luck to whoever takes them on, they are about to have their property declared a health hazard.
The second was a prospective tenant who applied to rent a property. They produced a glowing written reference from their landlord who was 'not contactable' having sold the property and moved overseas (yeah right). A little digging by us revealed they had forged the written reference, and had not one, but two, Tenancy Tribunal awards against them for breaching the conditions of tenancy. In my experience landlords rarely take poor performing tenants to Tribunal, so for them to have gone twice in recent history tells me they performed very poorly indeed - how many more times had they caused problems and not been taken to Tribunal? I shudder to think. If they are lying right at the start, you don't want them. If only their past landlords performed background checks. I have no doubt they will find someone silly enough to sign them up to a tenancy based on a bogus written reference.
So, if you don't know how to check a tenants background effectively to save yourself heartbreak and a great deal of work sorting out problems, or you just can't be bothered, call us to do it for you. The money and time we will save you will more than likely pay for the property management fees. And best of all, we guarantee our tenant selection, making your investment property lower risk.
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