Screening a prospective tenant can be a difficult task for even the most experienced landlords. Everyone is on the lookout for a tenant who pays his rent on time and leaves the property undamaged. However, it is not easy to recognize the traits of a tenant during the initial walk-through.

Following is a list of some useful tips for screening potential tenants for your rental home:

• Get the application form filled up: The first and most important step is to ask the prospective tenant to fill up the rental application form. This form should include everything you want to inquire about the tenant. This may include personal information (contact number, previous landlords and references), employment information (current and previous employers), lifestyle information (number of occupants and pets) as well as financial information (current salary, credit report).
• Get in touch with previous landlords: You can obtain some basic information about the tenant’s lifestyle by getting in touch with the previous landlords. You can ask the landlords questions pertaining to the history of late payments, the condition of the property maintained and any major issues caused by the tenant.
• Conduct a credit check: It is imperative to thoroughly review the credit report of a prospective tenant. This will reveal information about any history of late payments, credit card account bills, loans taken, unpaid balances etc.
• Contact the renter’s employer: Before signing the lease documents, ensure that the tenant has a steady flow of income. You can ask the potential tenant to submit pay slips for the past few months.
• Perform background checks: You need to conduct a background check. This will provide you any information regarding the criminal and eviction history of a prospective tenant. These reports can be obtained by using the tenant’s social security number for which you need to take permission from him.
• Interview the tenant: You can interview the potential tenant on the phone or a conduct a face-to-face session. Focus on questions related to his lifestyle while ensuring not to discriminate him based on color, disability, religion, sex etc.

We, at REAL Star Property Management, LLC, can help to find quality tenants for your rental home in Killeen, TX. For more information, you can call at (254) 693 – 7850.