Tenant Screening Reports, Services, & Solutions - White Paper

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WHAT SHOULD YOU CONSIDER BEFORE HIRING A TENANT SCREENING SERVICE? BROUGHT TO YOU BY RENTEC DIRECT© & CIC™

YOU WANT PERFECT TENANTS, SO HOW DO YOU FIND THEM? Tenant screening is an essential part of the rental housing industry. It is an objective tool that helps to separate the good tenants from the bad, and acts as the first line of defense for properties. But finding the perfect tenant screening service can be tricky. With so many companies promising so many different features, how do you know who is the right one to trust with your business?

Selecting the most qualified tenant screening provider can be boiled down to 3 essential considerations: customer service, speed, and the quality of data they provide you.

Using these three criteria as a guide for choosing your future tenant screening provider can help make finding the right company a walk in the park.

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CUSTOMER SERVICE

| A company that aims to educate your staff is a company with your best interest

Customer service is important to consider

at heart. A tenant screening provider that

when looking for a tenant screening

offers ways to educate your staff, not only

provider. When deciding whether it will be

about their products and services, but also

safe to approve an applicant for your

about the rental housing industry is

property, it’s essential you have reliable

essential. Educational resources included

resources available to assist with anything

with your account are a great tool to

you need to be confident in your decision.

utilize and a sign that a company cares

A company that cares about the needs of

about your success within the rental

your business is a must, and the

industry. Quality training courses are a

opportunity for two-way communication is

part of customer service that are often

essential to mitigate your risks without

overlooked, but very important

delaying your application process.

nonetheless.

Look for a company that ensures their

A reliable relationship is the cornerstone

own staff is exceptionally well-trained to

of any good business interaction. Without

support you. Should you have any

that unique relationship, a partnership

problems or questions, you want a service

cannot stand. When considering a tenant

team that can quickly and easily provide

screening provider, look for someone who

you with the help that you need. Try

is aware of the needs of your business and

looking for a company that provides 24/7

works with you to assure that all those

technical support or has a team of FCRA

needs are met. Don’t allow yourself to be

certified record researchers as a way of

just another customer; choose a service

vetting a quality service team.

that is excited to begin a budding relationship with you.

DON'T BE TREATED LIKE A NUMBER, FIND A COMPANY THAT CARES!

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SPEED Speed and reliability are the cornerstones of a good tenant screening service. The two go hand-in-hand, and a good provider won’t give you one without the other. You don’t want unreliable results delivered in seconds, nor would you opt for reputable information that takes days to be compiled. When you’re considering your future tenant screening provider, be sure to ask whether they use different methods to verify data accuracy and how long it takes on average to deliver reports. Also consider customer reviews of the service.

Does the company provide what it says it does? Are their delivery times consistent?

Have there been problems with their reports? Don’t blindly trust a provider; make sure to do the research beforehand.

If you have multiple properties with reasonably high volume, it’s also worth asking whether a provider will do a data comparison of their background check reports against your current provider. It might surprise you how many of your current residents that were approved may not have actually met your rental criteria due to missing information on their initial background check.

QUALITY OF DATA

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Be wary of trusting credit reports that

don’t make it clear what bureau(s) the information is being provided by, or the data may not have the accuracy or support you are expecting.

Aside from credit, an applicant’s eviction and criminal history are important to consider. Background checks are critical to choosing a resident that fully meets your rental criteria, and you need to pick a provider that relies on high quality sources for this information. A provider that collects their data from multiple databases and cross-references that information with different names your applicants’ may have used in the past is a good way to leave no stone unturned.

Tenant screening providers who utilize multiple sources and perform data quality checks daily provides you with a more detailed and accurate report than relying on something that uses limited resources.

You and your applicant’s personal information must be secure. It’s important for both you and your applicants to feel that their personal information is safe. When deciding on a screening provider to use, look into a company that has good data security while delivering fast results. Experian requires its top providers of credit reports to comply with the same high level security standards that credit card companies are required to follow. This comes with yearly audits and regular

Reputable credit sources make for a

employee training on how to treat

reputable credit report. Look for tenant

sensitive information to best protect it.

screening providers who get their reports

You should also consider what type of

directly from the three credit bureaus –

login security a company offers for

Experian, TransUnion, or Equifax. This will

accessing your account. A common

provide you with the most accurate data

procedure to watch for is 2-level multi-

possible and give you a truthful snapshot

factor authentication which is a common

of your applicant’s credit history.

practice used by banking institutions to verify identities before allowing access to accounts.

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FEELING A LITTLE MORE CONFIDENT ABOUT TENANT SCREENING?

The safety of your property and residents is a priority, and your aim should be to protect both as much as you are able. Having a consistent rental criteria means you are being objective in your decision so all applicants are treated fairly, while you also qualify potential tenants that are the most likely to treat your property and community with care. Tenant screening gives you the ability to accurately and objectively evaluate applicants while also protecting yourself from the liabilities associated with denying applicants based on factors that may not be legal (such as race or familial status). Tenant screening gives you the ability to accurately evaluate applicants, and decide which renters will be best suited for your property.

Choosing a tenant screening provider that meets your needs can make all the difference. Be sure to consider a company’s customer service, speed, and the quality of the data before selecting them as your provider. Without even one of these factors, you could be opening yourself up to a service that isn’t offering you and your property the peace of mind you deserve.

CUSTOMER SERVICE, SPEED, AND DATA QUALITY MAKE FOR A GOOD TENANT SCREENING SERVICE.

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT RENTECDIRECT.COM OR CICREPORTS.COM