Rent rant

[Remudamom]

We've got three rental houses, and I'm fed up with the whole thing.

 

Just this month a young couple that I thought were great renters are moving out. I was over at the house yesterday to show it to another couple and it has just been trashed. I was speechless.

 

Now, to be fair both families were over there later and I think they were trying to clean it up, but why let it get in that condition to begin with? They had no children, just two adults. I don't think we'll even be able to rent this house out until we do some major repair work.

 

We've been threatened twice by renters,(not little grumbling threats either, more like "I'm going to catch you out on a back road and make you sorry" threats, I think one guy actually told dh he was going to kill him) once because we wouldn't allow them to let all their friends move in with them, and once because we told them they could not fence in the front yard to keep a herd of goats.

 

We have been lied to, people have hidden dogs in the houses when we've had them sign a lease forbidding it. We've had thousands of dollars of damage done to the houses.

 

One couple was having a hard time, so we were lenient on their rent, letting them pay as they could. They moved out without ever paying, or even trying to pay.

 

One lady painted rooms insane colors. The kids refer to that place as "The Dr. Suess house".

 

The last couple I showed one of the houses to stood in the front yard and said "This is a nice quiet place" (duh, yeah, it's our ranch and we like it that way) "We're going to have to tell Steve he can't come over". Umm, who is Steve? "My best friend. He likes to party and rev his chopper up really loud." And then, from the same couple "I really hate to pen up my dog. He's part wolf." Please, move in a half mile from me and let your dog come on over and kill my cats and chickens. I'm thinking SSS.

 

I think we're going to get a application for renters to fill out before we'll even consider signing a lease. I saw one on the internet requesting SS#, bank account #, multiple references, on and on.

 

Has anyone had any luck with screening for decent renters? And do you do inspections while the renters are in the house? I'm really sick of this. I'm hoping that one day our children will be moving into these houses.

 

eta- we do have people sign a lease and we require a deposit. The deposit has never even begun to cover the damage.

Edited May 1, 2011 by Remudamom

[QueenCat]

Screening via a criminal background check and a credit check is perfectly reasonable.

[Murphy101]

Screening via a criminal background check and a credit check is perfectly reasonable.

 

Not only that, I have never heard of it NOT being done. We haven't needed to rent in over 10 years and that was a requirement of all our leases even back then.

[Tess in the Burbs]

We rent now and had to do a background check, credit check, references(and yes, she did call), and put down a month's rent for deposit. And she is a great landlord. I have fixed some things. I have put anything she left aside in a box...like curtains...we actually bought the same ones but in different color for a bedroom and will put hers back up when gone. And my landlord calls professionals out for things instead of trying to rig it herself. I appreciate that. We have a/c service and bug service. And next week an electrician is coming per my request.

 

I find the landlords who do the background checks and get good renters like us in a home tend to be good landlords and take care of the property. We take very good care of this place.

 

I find the places we rented in the past that were easy to get into were awful landlords when the house really needed repairs.

 

Anyway, wish you were near me....we would love to be in the country renting :001_smile:

[Aubrey]

Oh, man. I'm so sorry. I can't imagine what kind of people would do that in the first place, but to do it to YOU?

 

I wish I could come live down the street from you. I do have quite a few kids, but we've left houses so nice they don't even send a make-ready crew after us.

 

But...uh...I've helped friends move, &...uh...I can imagine. I think a clean (deep clean; don't look at my clutter!) house comes from frequent moving of furniture. :D

[Denisemomof4]

I feel your pain on this. We sold our duplex because the pain of having rentals just wasn't worth it. Then when mil ended up in a nursing home we started to rent out her home. Never again. I *hate* being a landlord! Actually dh does all the work but I still hate the stress of it all. We're in a different situation than you, though, because when we had our duplex we had three young kids, and then with mil's house we had two teens and two young kids. We also had our rentals 45 minutes away because we LIVED in the duplex we owned and then bought a home in the country.

 

We would NEVER consider renting out to someone without checking them out first. Only serious renters apply because we'd charge $25 or $35, which ever it cost to run a credit check. We also check references but you never REALLY know who you're calling. Could be a friend! Our contract states that the initial 3 - 6 months are a month to month trial period and dh DOES collect the rent and inspect the house at the same time. Only after 6 months will we sign a more permanent lease. Nobody has ever made it beyond that 6 month period, but it's always been due to financial issues.

 

You should also put something in the contract that states no repainting unless it's a neutral color. Now you'll have to do some major painting!

 

When we have allowed pets, by approval, we get a security deposit for the pet alone, on top of the first and last month's rent. There was never damage so the security deposit was always returned.

[i.love.lucy]

I hate that. It's this kind of terrible behavior that gives good renters like my dh and me a bad name. When you KNOW you are a good renter, but they look at you suspiciously and require ridiculous deposits, you can only assume they have been burned, and burned bad, in the past. It's really too bad because there are some good renters out there. We moved in here and cleaned, painted (the owners neutral color and just on the kitchen baseboards that were so beat up), caulked, repaired flooring, fixed the fence, planted flowers, spread grass seed, and are even going to replace a ceiling fan because we need some moving air in here. But I think it's because we have owned all our marriage almost and have an "owners" mindset.

[mrs.m]

Screening via a criminal background check and a credit check is perfectly reasonable.

 

:iagree:

 

Require them to pay the fee for the screening and get a past rental reference. It weeds out the dead beats right away!!! But it makes it harder for you to rent the place out.

[KristinaBreece]

Oh, man. I'm so sorry. I can't imagine what kind of people would do that in the first place, but to do it to YOU?

 

I wish I could come live down the street from you. I do have quite a few kids, but we've left houses so nice they don't even send a make-ready crew after us.

 

But...uh...I've helped friends move, &...uh...I can imagine. I think a clean (deep clean; don't look at my clutter!) house comes from frequent moving of furniture. :D

 

I worked over my high school summers for a leasing agent, prepping, cleaning & painting apartments for people to move in to. I always try to leave an empty apartment the way I would have cleaned one of those.

[Impish]

We rent.

 

I loathe credit checks, to be honest. Up until 2 yrs ago, I had none. No credit cards, no debts...and that worked against us.

 

We found this place when I was expecting Princess. Been here 5 yrs now. We screwed up once with rent, thanks to WCB dicking me around. Immediately contacted our landlord, gave him cash to cover any NSF fee (we give him post dated cheques), and ran over the amt in cash as soon as WCB straightened stuff out (3 days later).

 

I'm praying we buy this year. I'm so tired of tossing $ away on rent. For what we pay, we could easily carry a mortgage.

 

I have to say I don't get ppl that screw around with rent. A place to live isn't optional.

[Carol in Cal.]

We have one rental, and we have only really had bad trouble once. We follow the suggestions in Nolo Press' landlord book.

 

Tenants fill out an application. We get a credit report and check references, employment, and two prior landlords. If we can't verify that information or reach those people, we regretfully decline the tenant, even if it means that the house sits empty.

 

We charge below market rent and above market security deposits. We explicitly tell people that this is so that we can choose someone who has a stake in keeping the house as nice as it is when they move in. We also tell people, look, we used to live here. These others on the street are our former neighbors. We don't want to let them down by having this house look rundown. You can't tell by looking that it's the only rental on the block, and it needs to stay that way.

 

These techniques work pretty well.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Sigh. We've done the background checks and credit checks (which I really recommend doing, btw) and we've still had some horror stories. We evicted the people in one house and they took a sledgehammer to the plumbing, cr*pped on the carpet and did other horrible things. Our homeowner's insurance covered it, but still . . .

[Carol in Cal.]

OK, let me reemphasize what is probably the most crucial suggestion.

 

Two prior landlords. If you can't reach them, or have reason to believe that they are not credibly landlords, don't rent to the tenant.

 

That's because if a tenant is bad, the current landlord might make them sound better just to get rid of them. The prior one has no such incentive.

 

Make sure that one question you get answered is whether they pay the rent on time, and that another is whether the landlord would rent to them again.

 

Nothing is certain, and circumstances do change; but these questions are tremendously helpful.

[justamouse]

Not only that, I have never heard of it NOT being done. We haven't needed to rent in over 10 years and that was a requirement of all our leases even back then.

 

:iagree:Every rental I had came with a credit check, background check and a hole host of questions including references.

[....]

Oh, no! Don't tell me these stories! :tongue_smilie: I also have a rental house. We did a credit check for this guy - and he owns a house in another city. So, that was our screening. He's been great, tho.

 

Wow, I remember that story about the tenant taking a sledgehammer to the plumbing. Sheesh!!

[LidiyaDawn]

Not only that, I have never heard of it NOT being done. We haven't needed to rent in over 10 years and that was a requirement of all our leases even back then.

 

:iagree:Every rental I had came with a credit check, background check and a hole host of questions including references.

 

We've always rented and have NEVER been asked for a credit check, let alone a criminal background check. I'm not even sure if the latter would be legal for a landlord to request here.

 

There are lousy tenants - and there are lousy landlords.

 

I wonder what would happen if I asked a potential landlord for a criminal background check….

[Remudamom]

We've always rented and have NEVER been asked for a credit check, let alone a criminal background check. I'm not even sure if the latter would be legal for a landlord to request here.

 

There are lousy tenants - and there are lousy landlords.

 

I wonder what would happen if I asked a potential landlord for a criminal background check….

 

We have a professional do all our repairs. We have a great guy that shows up immediately if it is some sort of emergency and usually within 24 hours for non-emergency things. We've just had an arguement with a gal who wanted her friend to come in and change something electrical because she wanted to put her dryer somewhere else. Sorry. Nope. But she didn't want no for an answer and kept fighting about it. We told her she could have her deposit and rent back and get out. She backed down.

 

We don't like to be hard about our renters, but really, it's our place, on our ranch where we live and work every day. So if you don't want to follow our rules, hit the road. They don't have to rent from us, and we don't have to rent to them. I'd rather have the houses sit empty than deal with deadbeats. I've got better things to do.

 

So, if a potential renter asked for a background check for me you can imagine what I would say.

[Remudamom]

Oh, man. I'm so sorry. I can't imagine what kind of people would do that in the first place, but to do it to YOU?

 

I wish I could come live down the street from you. I do have quite a few kids, but we've left houses so nice they don't even send a make-ready crew after us.

 

 

 

I don't mind kids at all. AnotherLinda and her family lived in our "farmhouse" for three years and those kids were nothing but a blessing to me. I love to drive the pony cart by the houses and stop for the kids to love on the pony.

[Impish]

I don't mind kids at all. AnotherLinda and her family lived in our "farmhouse" for three years and those kids were nothing but a blessing to me. I love to drive the pony cart by the houses and stop for the kids to love on the pony.

Man, I wish we were nearby.

[sewingmama]

was over at the house yesterday to show it to another couple and it has just been trashed. I was speechless.

 

Now, to be fair both families were over there later and I think they were trying to clean it up, but why let it get in that condition to begin with?

 

Do you do regular house inspections? We rent and our house is inspected by the landlord agent every 12 weeks. They are super strict - windows washed, house tidy, carpets cleaned, yard weed free, ovens cleaned, walls washed down etc. I got in trouble last time because the skirting boards were dusty :glare:. As much as I loathe being forced to spend 2 weeks deep cleaning the place every three months it does prevent the problem of the cleaning not being done consistantly and thus the house being "trashed" when you move out and the landlord is always up to date with what condition the house is in before it becomes a big problem. It also allows the landlord to keep up with the repairs before a little thing becomes a big issue.

 

We have applications, background checks, credit checks and reference checks also.

[Remudamom]

Do you do regular house inspections? We rent and our house is inspected by the landlord agent every 12 weeks. They are super strict - windows washed, house tidy, carpets cleaned, yard weed free, ovens cleaned, walls washed down etc. I got in trouble last time because the skirting boards were dusty :glare:. As much as I loathe being forced to spend 2 weeks deep cleaning the place every three months it does prevent the problem of the cleaning not being done consistantly and thus the house being "trashed" when you move out and the landlord is always up to date with what condition the house is in before it becomes a big problem. It also allows the landlord to keep up with the repairs before a little thing becomes a big issue.

 

We have applications, background checks, credit checks and reference checks also.

 

I have never done this, mainly because I want our renters to feel like they have some privacy. But I'm going to insist on it now. I won't like it though.

[JennyD]

We charge below market rent and above market security deposits. We explicitly tell people that this is so that we can choose someone who has a stake in keeping the house as nice as it is when they move in.

 

I've lived in various rentals for the past 17 years, and while I much prefer places run by management companies instead of individual landlords, I had one very good landlord who did something similar -- below market rent but more stringent requirements for renting. He was looking to sell the place shortly and needed it kept in good shape It worked out very nicely for both of us.

 

If I were renting a place out, I would also not allow pets.

[WishboneDawn]

So, if a potential renter asked for a background check for me you can imagine what I would say.

 

Never rented so take this for what it's worth but it would seem to me that someone who asks that of you might be someone who plans and takes things like finding the right place seriously. Sounds like someone like that would have some potential.

[Aubrey]

OK, let me reemphasize what is probably the most crucial suggestion.

 

Two prior landlords. If you can't reach them, or have reason to believe that they are not credibly landlords, don't rent to the tenant.

 

That's because if a tenant is bad, the current landlord might make them sound better just to get rid of them. The prior one has no such incentive.

 

Make sure that one question you get answered is whether they pay the rent on time, and that another is whether the landlord would rent to them again.

 

Nothing is certain, and circumstances do change; but these questions are tremendously helpful.

 

Hmmm...before we rented this place, we rented from the seminary. Before that, we owned our home. Would that make us risky?

[angela in ohio]

No luck here. We haven't been at it long enough to have that many problems, but it's a pain. We are renting the house we left behind in the city, so it's worth it because at least we don't have to live there anymore, but it's been one thing after another.

 

We had renters that we knew, and we let them live there for next to nothing to help them out, but they half painted a room and left other damage we had to repair. Now we have a woman who never pays on time, but she was getting ready to have a baby and dh was a softie even though we knew she might not pay well.

 

We have an application that includes a credit and background check, plus we call two previous landlords.

[Mejane]

We've considered buying to rent in the past, but this is why we haven't. Everyone we know who rents has these horror stories. Sorry.

[secular_mom]

Do you do regular house inspections? We rent and our house is inspected by the landlord agent every 12 weeks. They are super strict - windows washed, house tidy, carpets cleaned, yard weed free, ovens cleaned, walls washed down etc. I got in trouble last time because the skirting boards were dusty :glare:. As much as I loathe being forced to spend 2 weeks deep cleaning the place every three months it does prevent the problem of the cleaning not being done consistantly and thus the house being "trashed" when you move out and the landlord is always up to date with what condition the house is in before it becomes a big problem. It also allows the landlord to keep up with the repairs before a little thing becomes a big issue.

 

We have applications, background checks, credit checks and reference checks also.

Wow, that's a bit much. In our current rental, the owner lives out of state and uses a property management company- they inspect our home twice a year now, before it was once a year before the annual signing of the lease (they lease it out 1 year at a time). The lady who comes out for the inspections is really nice, and they are nowhere near that picky. She just wants to make sure we aren't REALLY trashing the place, ya know? No checking for dust anywhere, our windows never look clean because they have condensation marks between the pains that we just can't clean.

If I was inspecting a house I'd want to see that the dishes are done and the kitchen is tidy (kitchens that aren't kept clean can become a nightmare and can tell you a LOT about a tenant's habits), bathrooms are clean, laundry isn't piled up ridiculously, floors are clean, garbage taken out, and the garage isn't full of ridiculous amounts of junk. Reasonable expectations of cleanliness without going overboard and being nitpicky.

[Remudamom]

Never rented so take this for what it's worth but it would seem to me that someone who asks that of you might be someone who plans and takes things like finding the right place seriously. Sounds like someone like that would have some potential.

 

Ha! You've got a point. Really, who in their right mind would want me for a landlady anyhow?

[AmyinMD]

Do you do regular house inspections? We rent and our house is inspected by the landlord agent every 12 weeks. They are super strict - windows washed, house tidy, carpets cleaned, yard weed free, ovens cleaned, walls washed down etc. I got in trouble last time because the skirting boards were dusty :glare:. As much as I loathe being forced to spend 2 weeks deep cleaning the place every three months it does prevent the problem of the cleaning not being done consistantly and thus the house being "trashed" when you move out and the landlord is always up to date with what condition the house is in before it becomes a big problem. It also allows the landlord to keep up with the repairs before a little thing becomes a big issue.

 

We have applications, background checks, credit checks and reference checks also.

 

 

This seems way over the top. I can see checking to make sure the house isn't being trashed but I think things like checking the oven are an invasion of the persons privacy. I don't follow that all now and we own a house.

 

When we left our last rental before we bought I thought for sure we were going to get dinged on our security deposit. My older son (then age 2) had colored everywhere with red sharpie. We wound up painting certain areas and had the carpet professionally cleaned but there were still a few areas that had slight pink marks. Our cat had also scratched on 2 of the door frames. We had done some light sanding and painted over it but it was still slightly noticable. The landlord actually told us when we left that we were the best renters he'd ever had because we actually cleaned before we moved out.

[sewingmama]

Wow, that's a bit much. In our current rental, the owner lives out of state and uses a property management company- they inspect our home twice a year now, before it was once a year before the annual signing of the lease (they lease it out 1 year at a time). The lady who comes out for the inspections is really nice, and they are nowhere near that picky. She just wants to make sure we aren't REALLY trashing the place, ya know? No checking for dust anywhere, our windows never look clean because they have condensation marks between the pains that we just can't clean.

If I was inspecting a house I'd want to see that the dishes are done and the kitchen is tidy (kitchens that aren't kept clean can become a nightmare and can tell you a LOT about a tenant's habits), bathrooms are clean, laundry isn't piled up ridiculously, floors are clean, garbage taken out, and the garage isn't full of ridiculous amounts of junk. Reasonable expectations of cleanliness without going overboard and being nitpicky.

 

 

Totally agree with you - but those are the renting conditions in Australia so we have to live with it or not rent. Believe me - I've muttered more then a few curses when I'm washing windows and walls at midnight the night before the inspection (with 3 little kids there is no point cleaning while they are awake - they just go behind me and retrash). I've grumbled many times to my DH "Why can't they just come in and make sure we aren't growing weed and punching holes in the walls". Add that to the fact that it is extremely difficult to find someone who will rent to you if you have kids and so I always have to make extra sure the house is sparkly to try and prove "no kids here" :glare:

 

One time just as the landlord was knocking on the door one of my kids ran up to window which is beside it to see who it was. I had just cleaned and polished the window but my child put their hand on it and left some fingerprints. As the landlord agent walked in she said "You better wipe those fingerprints off so I can give a good report " :001_huh:

 

Ever since then - as soon as my kids wake up on inspection day I dress them immediately and take them out of the house for breakfast (so there aren't crumbs I miss) and we stay out of the house till after the person has been. Otherwise I spend the whole time before they come yelling at my kids not to touch/use anything (not even the toilet) and they basically can't move from the couch.

 

Yes that's how clean they want it to be - as if no one is living here :chillpill:

[Remudamom]

 

Ever since then - as soon as my kids wake up on inspection day I dress them immediately and take them out of the house for breakfast (so there aren't crumbs I miss) and we stay out of the house till after the person has been. Otherwise I spend the whole time before they come yelling at my kids not to touch/use anything (not even the toilet) and they basically can't move from the couch.

 

Yes that's how clean they want it to be - as if no one is living here :chillpill:

 

I'm sorry, I know it's not funny to you, but I just had an image flash of your babies lined up on the couch in strait jackets, waiting for the inspection from hell to be over. :lol:

[sewingmama]

I'm sorry, I know it's not funny to you, but I just had an image flash of your babies lined up on the couch in strait jackets, waiting for the inspection from hell to be over. :lol:

 

Wish I did have straight jackets - then I wouldn't have to spend up to five hours wandering the neighbourhood wondering what to do with my kids to kill time ;)

[Cera]

I don't mind kids at all. AnotherLinda and her family lived in our "farmhouse" for three years and those kids were nothing but a blessing to me. I love to drive the pony cart by the houses and stop for the kids to love on the pony.

 

I wish I could move into one of your rentals.

[Tess in the Burbs]

My daughter loves horses. We are good renters...maybe dh needs to job hunt close to you :-). LOL!

[Truscifi]

My parents use a property management company. They do a credit check and background check and contact previous landlords, and the do qyarterly inspections (just normal ones though, not like the inspection from hell previously mentioned :tongue_smilie:). So far there has been no trouble, but they've rented to the same single guy with no pets whose company pays for his housing the whole time. They are hoping that guy NEVER moves!

[happypamama]

Background check, criminal check, even personal/professional references -- those would all be okay with me, if I were renting. However, I'd be cautious about the credit check these days. I have a decade of perfect payment records on my mortgages and bills, but if something happened to DH's job, and we lost our house and were looking to rent, our credit would be trashed. So many people are in that situation these days. If you did a credit check, I'd inquire about sudden changes in situation and allow leniency for that.

 

I'd love to live in your rentals! My kids would love the horses, and you could come get a baby fix any time you wanted!

[Crimson Wife]

For the places we've rented, it's always been standard to have an extensive background check, a hefty security deposit, and wording in our lease that we will pay for professional cleaning & carpet cleaning by someone on the landlord/lady's approved list.

[mrs.m]

There are lousy tenants - and there are lousy landlords.

 

I wonder what would happen if I asked a potential landlord for a criminal background check….

 

The difference here is that the landlord isn't potentially going to do damage to your personal property or attempt to squander your potential income that makes the payment of the home they are living in by living rent free for as many months as the state law allows (it's 3 in the state our property is in). They aren't looking to get money out of me month to month.

 

I wouldn't have a problem if a potential renter wanted to speak with other or past renters to see how well I manage the property. That's fair for someone who really is looking for a nice home to rent. But it has never happened!

Edited May 1, 2011 by jannylynn

[PiCO]

I wonder what would happen if I asked a potential landlord for a criminal background check….

 

The difference is the landlord owns the property, and is responsible for it. The landlord is not going to skip out on the rent, or cause damage to the renter's house.

 

I do agree that there are bad landlords out there though. I would definitely get references from two prior renters ;).

[PiCO]

Ha! You've got a point. Really, who in their right mind would want me for a landlady anyhow?

 

ME!

[Sugarfoot]

We have several rental properties, and as you may remember, we live in a college town.;) So, we have a whole host of issues related to that. We've even had parents try to defend their college-age kids' ridiculous behavior, which frankly just makes everyone else shake their heads and say, "So this is why these kids behave the way they do..."

 

For many reasons, we find that it's easier to have a property manager. She deals with all of the garbage, not us. We pay 10% monthly to her, and it's WELL worth it, to us. She does frequent "check-ups" by changing furnace filters monthly, etc., which helps keep an eye on the general state of each property. She's unemotional in dealing with all of the renters, and she's not the owner, just the manager, so the renters don't get too emotional with her, either.

 

ETA: She also does extensive checks in the beginning--background, credit, previous rentals, etc. Some of it's very helpful, and sometimes college kids just don't have much of a background, which means their parents will be required to sign with them.

 

Maybe something to consider?

[TammyinTN]

We've got three rental houses, and I'm fed up with the whole thing.

 

Just this month a young couple that I thought were great renters are moving out. I was over at the house yesterday to show it to another couple and it has just been trashed. I was speechless.

 

Now, to be fair both families were over there later and I think they were trying to clean it up, but why let it get in that condition to begin with? They had no children, just two adults. I don't think we'll even be able to rent this house out until we do some major repair work.

 

We've been threatened twice by renters,(not little grumbling threats either, more like "I'm going to catch you out on a back road and make you sorry" threats, I think one guy actually told dh he was going to kill him) once because we wouldn't allow them to let all their friends move in with them, and once because we told them they could not fence in the front yard to keep a herd of goats.

 

We have been lied to, people have hidden dogs in the houses when we've had them sign a lease forbidding it. We've had thousands of dollars of damage done to the houses.

 

One couple was having a hard time, so we were lenient on their rent, letting them pay as they could. They moved out without ever paying, or even trying to pay.

 

One lady painted rooms insane colors. The kids refer to that place as "The Dr. Suess house".

 

The last couple I showed one of the houses to stood in the front yard and said "This is a nice quiet place" (duh, yeah, it's our ranch and we like it that way) "We're going to have to tell Steve he can't come over". Umm, who is Steve? "My best friend. He likes to party and rev his chopper up really loud." And then, from the same couple "I really hate to pen up my dog. He's part wolf." Please, move in a half mile from me and let your dog come on over and kill my cats and chickens. I'm thinking SSS.

 

I think we're going to get a application for renters to fill out before we'll even consider signing a lease. I saw one on the internet requesting SS#, bank account #, multiple references, on and on.

 

Has anyone had any luck with screening for decent renters? And do you do inspections while the renters are in the house? I'm really sick of this. I'm hoping that one day our children will be moving into these houses.

 

eta- we do have people sign a lease and we require a deposit. The deposit has never even begun to cover the damage.

 

This is our second home in Germany that we've rented. We had an agent to find this home and that was 2 months rent...$6000 US dollars ...then our landlords did a credit check and we rented ---2 more months rent in advance...another $6000 and then you have to deal with the euro to dollar rate changing every single pay period...

 

Renting is expensive...screen like crazy. We always try to be excellent renters and leave it better than we find it. For this home we put in our own internet antennae and tons of rose bushes and did a lot of outside stuff. Our landlords are over the moon happy with us. They are forever bringing us goodies and making sure were happy. We had a problem with our hot water system and they begged us to shower at their home...hired the best in the business to come fix it on a holiday weekend.

 

We always make them welcome in our home and treat them with respect because they are just so kind to us. I hope you can find some good people to rent your property!:001_smile:

[Carol in Cal.]

Background check, criminal check, even personal/professional references -- those would all be okay with me, if I were renting. However, I'd be cautious about the credit check these days. I have a decade of perfect payment records on my mortgages and bills, but if something happened to DH's job, and we lost our house and were looking to rent, our credit would be trashed. So many people are in that situation these days. If you did a credit check, I'd inquire about sudden changes in situation and allow leniency for that.

 

 

You know, that's what we do. If someone has bad credit, and they tell us about it and about the cause and circumstances of it, and if it's concentrated in just one timeframe, then they still look really good. If they don't tell us but it's concentrated in just one timeframe, I'll ask them about it and still consider them. But people who have a lot of hits, like it's more of a habit NOT to pay their bills, are not good candidates for us.

 

I've rented to people with bad credit for a good reason, who are basically ethical about paying their bills. I've also carried people who were unable to pay the rent due to bad circumstances for a period of time. It's a very individual thing, and I think it's important to evaluate this on a case by case basis.

[Carol in Cal.]

Hmmm...before we rented this place, we rented from the seminary. Before that, we owned our home. Would that make us risky?

 

Not to me particularly. Most of the renters that we have dealt with have never owned a home, so it would make you kind of unusual. If someone came in with that kind of application, I would look harder at other references and at the credit check.

 

All these things are statistical rather than definitive. You can get someone with the best intentions and records and have them change. You can get someone who has a terrible record who, for one reason or another, becomes the best, most reliable tenant you ever had. Your chances of having a reliable tenant increase but are not guarenteed if you follow these suggestions.

 

The fact is, as a very minor landlord with just one rental house, I am entrusting a really big asset to strangers every time I rent it out. I want to rent to people who will pay the rent on time, every month, and who will keep the front yard immaculate for the good of the neighborhood and who will keep the inside from being damaged or irreparably dirty. They don't have to be saints, and they don't have do perfect housekeeping all the time.

[Mynyel]

I rent and I can't stand renters. Really, I mean it. A lot of renters give people like us bad names.

 

We have been renting this place for almost 5 years. We have a hard time finding rentals because we have two dogs. I can be quite honest when I say *NO* damage has been done by the dogs.

 

Actually the only damage is to some dry wall near the floor in the hallway (not caused by the dogs though, is was ds2 when he was younger).

 

This makes is hard for us to move though as a lot of landlords want a high fee for the dogs (not deposit but fee), which I understand but makes it hard because I know our dogs don't do any damage.

 

So people like us, who pay their rent on time every month, we can't find anything decent. Well except where we live now. The only problem we really have is it is to far away from where we like to go. Takes an hour one way and we would like to move closer.

 

Even though I have never been a landlord I can feel your pain Remudamom, we are the ones that have to move in after the bad renters!

[Mynyel]

ME!

 

Me too! :D

[ondreeuh]

My MIL didn't used to run credit checks, but she has started. It's good info, and it weeds out people who aren't willing to be honest with you.

 

As a landlord you can get access any time with a posted 24 hour notice. It's a good idea to schedule a walk-through a couple times a year to check smoke detectors, look for leaks/water damage, check gutters, change furnace filters, etc.

[Margo out of lurking]

I think we're going to get a application for renters to fill out before we'll even consider signing a lease. I saw one on the internet requesting SS#, bank account #, multiple references, on and on.

 

Has anyone had any luck with screening for decent renters? And do you do inspections while the renters are in the house? I'm really sick of this. I'm hoping that one day our children will be moving into these houses.

 

I've never heard of anyone not screening renters. And don't call their current landlord (who may be happy to get rid of them), call landlords prior to that.

 

We have two rental properties and use a property management company. It keeps us out of any potential hassles. They show the property, screen the applicants, run credit checks, handle rent payments, take phone calls when things go wrong.

 

The property manager filed court paperwork when one payment was late. They call dh for direction when necessary. Dh has inspected the homes during, for example, a simple toilet repair, and he walked through with an appraiser when we refinanced one house.

 

Your lease should indicate that you can sue them for damages over their damage deposit (although the challenge may be in actually getting any $$$ out of them).

 

Disclaimer: Different state laws may apply.

[StephanieZ]

Well, we've been pretty lucky with renting. . .but we've never done it as a business enterprise. . . just were stuck with two houses at one time, and then, now, we happen to have a residence on our commercial (vet hospital) property. So, we rent that residence at well below market to staff members, who are very good renters. . . But, we could easily let it sit empty rather than have any bad renters in there, so we have a lot of freedom to choose renters (and have other great, long term staff waiting in line to rent it when/if the current family moves out. . .)

 

That said, we have had plenty of disasters hiring people, lol. I found that we dramatically cut down on bad applicants (as in reduced our applications for entry level jobs by 70%!!) by making it clear in our ads that we require drug testing, credit check, and background check prior to employment. Just SAYING that we were going to do that cut applications dramatically. We've never actually bothered to do anything more than drug testing and calling references, but I think making a big deal that we were GOING to do those things cut out a lot of the worst applicants.

 

Sooo, based on my limited experience, I'd suggest you put in any ads that you are going to check all those things (assuming you're allowed to drug test as a landlord? I don't know if you can do that one. . .) and then at the very minimum do call prior land lords and verify employment (via either calling the employers and/or requiring the applicants to provide you with a current paystub).

 

I'd also suggest telling people that you'll be stopping by and inspecting on a regular basis (and put that in the lease) and that if they have any unauthorized pets and/or residents at the property, that there'll be a stiff fine (put that in the lease, pending lawyer OK) as well as eviction.

 

Hang in there! It sure sounds like a pain! I don't envy you having to deal with that. Our limited experience as landlords has convinced me that I'd never want to do it unless (as in our current situation), the residence had little value to me, and we did not depend on rental income as 'real' income. It's just too stressful, and people are too unreliable!

 

HTH

[Jean in Newcastle]

Oh, no! Don't tell me these stories! :tongue_smilie: I also have a rental house. We did a credit check for this guy - and he owns a house in another city. So, that was our screening. He's been great, tho.

 

Wow, I remember that story about the tenant taking a sledgehammer to the plumbing. Sheesh!!

 

I should say though that the only rentals we could afford to buy and rent out were in a big city, in a very high gang area. We found out later from the neighbors that both of these houses (including the one sledgehammered) were run as weekend drug party houses. I've always wondered how the renters had squeaky clean references and background checks. I wonder if they somehow pay for the privilege. . . We evicted because we found out about their illegal activity. If we did not evict them we could by law have lost our house to the court. (Not that we wouldn't have wanted them out of there anyway!)