Checking references is paramount to securing a good tenant

Processing tenancy applications must be one of the most important aspects of the property manager’s role.  Although things can always go pear-shaped, securing the right tenant is paramount to having a tenancy that runs well and without too many hiccups.

So often when a management is changed to another agent, you can see how poorly some agents treat this aspect of their role.

Things to check include the applicant’s current employment and previous employment and ask questions such as:

• How long have they been there?
• Are they reliable?
• Why did they leave?
• Would their boss rent to them if he or she had a rental property?

In relation to their current rental history and previous rental history, your questions should include:

• What date is/was their rent due?
• When were the payments made?
• How did they look after the property?
• Would you rent to them again?

It’s important to be very clear with your questions and take the time to speak to everyone in person.  So often I see a summary arrive on our fax asking for a reference for a tenant.  How can another property manager make a true assessment on a potential tenant when they haven’t taken the time to speak with the property manager or landlord/owner?  So often there is more to the story, but you won’t find that out if you rely on your fax summary.

I have to say I am astonished the amount of times I have heard from my team members (past and current), family and friends that they have been approved to rent a property and no one called their employment or the property manager for a reference.  How is this possible?

If your property manager / real estate agent include character references as part of the application form, then they too should be called.  Otherwise what’s the point of having it on the application form??

Make sure any attachments you ask for continue to tell the story. Are the payslips from the current employer and are the wage earnings as per the application form? What about the drivers licence – does the address match their current residence?  If not, why not?

Finally, remember in some ways the processing of a rental application is no different to the steps you would take if you were employing that person to work in your organisation.  So spend the time to get it right!