Top 5 Tenant Screening Criteria You Should Use for Your Rental Property

If you own a rental property in Turkey, chances are you have struggled to find a reliable tenant for your property or keep your property profitable by finding stable tenants. You may need to trust a real estate agent that you know to run the process or do it yourself. In both cases, you can end up finding a tenant that creates more trouble than possible gain and make your property investment a nightmare experience. Property managers offer “Tenant Screening” to avoid such concerns for landlords and reduce the risk of losing time and money on your rental investment.

 

Propline is a digital-era property management company in Turkey that provides a comprehensive rental property management service for international real estate investors and settlers in Turkey. We asked experts at Propline about the importance of tenant screening and the factors one should have in mind while running a tenant screening and background check.
 

The Essential Tenant Screening Criteria List for Rental Properties

Property management experts at Propline have years of experience dealing with rental investment issues for international owners in Turkey. One of their field of expertise is “systematic operations for tenant screening and reporting”. So, we asked them about the top 5 criteria when running a tenant screening operation to find the ideal tenant for a property in Turkey. They highlighted the following criteria:

 

1. Credit History and Financial Stability

The most important factor to study when checking potential tenants’ backgrounds is their financial affordability. You spend a fortune on your property and expect to have a steady cash inflow from your investment. The first filter that Propline’s property management experts apply when studying potential tenants is Credit History and Financial Stability.

 

Evaluating Credit Scores

Taking into account factors like payment history, outstanding debt, and credit history length, a tenant's credit score is a crucial indicator of their financial responsibility. Landlords should look for a credit score (or credit report) and bank statements within an acceptable range, investigate the factors that went into the score, and figure out if any low marks on the report are deviations or a sign of ongoing financial irresponsibility.

 

Assessing Income and Employment Stability

A tenant's ability to pay rent regularly is heavily dependent on their income and job security. The ratio of a tenant's monthly gross income (by getting income verifications) to the monthly rent is an important number for landlords to consider. (ideally, the gross monthly income should be at least three times the monthly rent). Rent payments from tenants with irregular employment history should raise red flags.

 

2. Rental History

One easy way to assess a potential tenant’s ability to steadily pay their rent is by checking their history as a tenant. You can easily make conclusions about one being the ideal tenant you are looking for or not is their history as a tenant. To access their tenant history you can:

Contact Previous Landlords

Contacting previous landlords can provide valuable information about a potential tenant's behavior and track record. Inquire about the tenant's payment history, compliance with lease terms, and overall behavior during the tenancy. Obtaining this information (such as asking if they pay rent on time) allows you to determine if the applicant has previously been a responsible tenant and predicts their behavior in your rental property.

 

Analyze Rental History Patterns

Reviewing a prospective tenant's rental history patterns can assist in identifying red flags or positive trends in their rental behavior. Look for trends like frequent moves, evictions, or disagreements with previous landlords. A consistent rental history with long-term tenancies and a track record of on-time rent payments is a strong indicator of a trustworthy tenant, increasing the likelihood of a successful landlord-tenant relationship.

 

3. Criminal Background Checks

Criminal history check or criminal record check is an essential and obvious task during tenant screening. It is easily carried out, making filtering easier. No rental property owner wants criminal activity in their real estate which can seriously damage the brand of their property. Dealing with people with criminal backgrounds is also a tough task to do. You can easily imagine the difficulties of dealing with such people in case they break lease agreement terms.

 

4. Personal and Professional References

Asking for references is also a very friendly way to check if you are leasing your property to your dream tenant! People from their previous residences or their workplaces can be reliable sources of information. You can easily get access to these references and document their guarantee claims. Asking for personal and professional references is also very cost-effective.

 

5. Eviction History

Eviction is a very bitter experience both for landlords and tenants, and people tend to avoid it as much as possible. However, in some cases, it seems that there is no other choice but to file an eviction request. Having an eviction background or a pattern of eviction in the potential tenant’s history is a very important criterion and red flag in finding the right tenant. But professional property managers have an objective approach to this issue. They consider the following factors:

 

Understanding the Reasons Behind Previous Evictions

When assessing a potential tenant's eviction history, it's crucial to understand the reasons behind any previous evictions. Some causes, such as non-payment of rent, damage to the property, or lease violations, may signal a higher risk for future issues. However, other reasons, like a one-time disagreement with a landlord or unforeseen financial hardships, may not necessarily indicate a pattern of irresponsible behavior.

 

Weighing the Risks of Renting to Previously Evicted Tenants

Before deciding to rent to a tenant with a history of eviction, it's essential to weigh the risks associated with such a decision. Evaluate the tenant's current financial stability, employment, and overall rental history to determine if they have addressed the issues that led to the eviction. If the eviction appears to be an isolated incident and the applicant demonstrates a strong commitment to being a responsible tenant, the risk may be acceptable. However, if the eviction is part of a larger pattern of problematic behavior, it may be safer to search for another tenant.

 

Leveraging Propline's Digital Transparent Property Management for Tenant Screening

You can imagine how difficult and time-consuming it can be to carry out each of the background check steps, especially if you are a foreigner in Turkey and don’t know the Turkish legal system, Turkish culture, and the language spoken in Turkey’s real estate market. This is why Propline has developed a comprehensive screening and reporting system for rental property owners to find the best tenants for them in Turkey.

Tenant screening comes with Propline’s property management and doesn’t have any extra charge for you, so you can only enjoy money inflow if you use Propline’s property management. By combining conventional know-how, efficient procedures, and digital infrastructure, Propline offers one of the best Property Management Services in Turkey at a very reasonable price.

 

Setting Your Rental Property Up for Success with the Right Tenant Screening Criteria

If you own a property and want to benefit from its rental income, you can face a lot of difficulties from finding the right tenant to keeping your property sound and functional with regular maintenance. Property management services can reduce your responsibilities and concerns regarding your investment. One of the most important tasks of property managers to reduce tenant turnover and the risk of finding an annoying tenant is effective tenant screening that has a well-designed procedure. To run such processes, there are many factors and criteria that can help with finding the best tenants for a property, with full compliance to housing laws.