What Does Tenant Screening Look Like in Affordable Housing?

Blog post title for an article explaining what tenant screening looks like in affordable housing.

 

What is Tenant Screening?

If you know anything about the rental process, you’ve likely heard of landlords screening potential residents after receiving applications. But what exactly is tenant screening?

Tenant screening is the standard practice used to evaluate prospective residents when processing housing applications.

While there is not one perfect screening method that yields perfect results, management often enlist the help of a third-party company. This helps ensure that all boxes are checked and that nothing is overlooked.

At Arbors, our property management staff submits all of the necessary documents to our external screening company. We are able to determine eligibility based on:

  • The information provided
  • The application received
  • Information gathered from the applicant’s prior landlords to verify their rental history 

 

What is a Property Manager Looking for When Screening Applicants?

As a property manager, you likely receive many applications for potential residents at your property. Therefore, it’s important to look at a few different key aspects of someone’s history when considering their application.

When screening applicants, we use screening criteria as well as a Resident Selection Plan. Anyone who meets these criteria is approved for tenancy.

Common factors that managers and screening companies look at in applicants include but are not limited to:

  • Current income
  • Credit score and history
  • Criminal background check
  • Eviction history
  • Employment history
  • Reason for leaving their previous residence

Each of these factors serve as helpful indicators for the management team to determine if the applicant would be a qualified candidate.

 

Why is Tenant Screening Important?

Tenant screening is important because it provides management with a general overview of the applicant’s history as a resident. 

With the information provided, property managers can make educated decisions that help protect the safety of their current tenants, as well as help preserve the integrity of the property(ies). Additionally, you can help ensure that not only is the applicant a good fit for the property, but that the property is a good fit for the applicant. 

Here at Arbors, we have a higher retention rate than the average in our industry. We feel that this is in part due to good screening, as well as great care of our residents during their tenancy. Screening properly makes a difference!

 

What Are the Risks of Not Properly Screening Applicants?

If you don’t screen your applicants appropriately, you risk the chance of having residents that could have a negative impact on your property or other tenants. 

One of the main ways that managers make mistakes during screening is not thoroughly examining an applicant’s background and missing vital information.

For example: one common mistake that many property managers make is failing to ask for previous landlord verifications. 

By failing to gather those references, whether good or bad, you will not have a clear picture of who you are about to rent to. A previous landlord may be able to warn you of poor payment history, poor housekeeping, and even poor conduct of the applicant in question.

On the other hand, positive references from a previous landlord can provide peace of mind that the applicant may be a good fit for your property. Perhaps they’ll even have a great impact on the property and neighboring community!

 

At the End…

Tenant screening is a common (and important) practice among property managers! It gives managers a glimpse into a resident’s history and what they could be like as a resident at their property.

Screening applicants helps managers make educated decisions on who is a good fit overall for their property. By looking at multiple aspects of the applicant’s background, you can get a fuller picture of who each applicant is. 

Managers are looking for applicants who will bring value to their property and community, and tenant screening helps guide the selection process. Just make sure you are thorough in your research and don’t miss any key details!

If you need help screening applicants or managing your property, please feel free to contact us here at Arbors Management at 1-800-963-1280 or monroeville@arbors.com – we’d be happy to help!