As a landlord, you strive to weed out bad tenants with the idea of finding the perfect one. Even so, you know that luck often comes into play.
Fortunately, there are things you can do to tip the scales in your favor. For instance, you need to understand the many red flags of a bad tenant. Here are a few to watch out for during the screening process:
- Insufficient income: If a person barely has enough money to pay his or her rent, there’s a good chance you’ll eventually find yourself with the short end of the stick.
- Gaps in employment: This isn’t always a red flag, but it’s something to learn more about before you let the person sign on the dotted line.
- Low credit score: This is an absolute red flag, especially if you come to find that the potential tenant has missed payments in the past.
- Always on the go: It goes without saying that you want a tenant who will stay in your property for the duration of the lease, if not longer. Someone who is always on the go, moving from one place to the next, should raise a red flag.
These are just a handful of the many red flags of a bad tenant. If you get stuck with one of these people, the best thing you can do is work with them to make things right.
In the event that a tenant stops paying rent or breaks the terms of the lease, you’ll need to read through the contract to get a better idea of your legal rights and the steps you can take.
Source: Green Residential, “10 Red Flags To Look Out For When Screening a New Tenant,” accessed April 11, 2018