Getting Tenant Forms on a Dime
When you want to rent out property there are a host of forms in the decision making process, by having the correct tenant forms you can gain leverage in this process.
You've worked hard and come up with the money to acquire a property and with interest rates on your mortgage poised to rise it is time to rent out that property and earn some positive cash flow.
If this is your first time taking the plunge as a landlord you will need to get your papers in order.
Depending on the state where you live the rules on renting vary, one rule that always hold true is an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
The best sources for tenant forms can be found online or if you have the time you can design your own forms.
The forms must cover a few essential topics.
The first aspect is to request the employment particulars of the prospective tenant, You want to ensure they have a stable source of income to cover the monthly rental amount, It would also be a good idea to ask for a copy of the latest pay stub or letter of employment from the employer confirming they are still employed.
We now know that the prospective renter has income, your tenant forms need to find out if they are responsible with their money and the way we find that is out is by asking for a copy of their credit report.
A credit report is a financial snap shot of how the prospect has behaved with their finances over the last 5-7 years.
Your tenant forms must be very clear in requesting the consent from the tenant to get the credit report.
If they refuse to provide it then you should be extremely leery of renting to the tenant since they may have something to hide.
If the credit report has gaps in the history or if the score is lower than average you need to find out the circumstances from the tenant why their credit score is low.
If the reasons sound plausible then you can move forward with the process, If the reasoning is invalid or seems unlikely then you should move onto the next prospect.
If your prospective tenant has made it past the employment and credit check then your tenant forms needs to get permission to speak with a former landlord.
The feedback from a former landlord will give you a good idea in whether or not to rent to the person.
If you get bad feedback you should move onto someone else if you do get positive feedback then you can hand over the keys with confidence.