Tenant Verification Services provides landlords and property managers with a variety of screening options. Select a market to sign up or learn more.
Generally, it is best to avoid renting to people you know. The most obvious reason is that doing business with a family member or friend can damage the relationship. But it's a small world, and at some point, you are bound to be approached by someone you know who...
Half the battle of managing rental properties is having good systems in place. Even if a landlord only fills vacancies occasionally, it's important to have solid processes to rely on to avoid recreating the wheel with every new tenancy. Landlords who stick with these...
The British Columbia government announced that it has begun implementing the recommendations of the Rental Housing Task Force released last December. (See our post British Columbia to Revamp Rental Regulations.) These changes will be adopted in three stages. Phase 1,...
Tenant screening may the most important part of property management, but it doesn't need to be the most difficult. Don't make it harder than it has to be. Avoid these mistakes and keep your properties profitable for years to come: Your Rental Ad Could Be Your Undoing...
A property manager in San Diego agreed to pay damages to a tenant to settle a claim over secondhand smoke. The tenant has a child with a respiratory disability, and the neighboring tenants were heavy smokers. The tenant claims that the secondhand smoke was aggravating...
The property manager and the owner of a rental home in Portland are facing a lawsuit after the manager allegedly entered a unit and removed a tenant's cat. According to a news report, the tenant claims that a neighbor saw the property manager take the cat. The tenant...
Chicago, Los Angeles, and Atlanta are the most popular places to rent, according to analysis conducted by popular rental search platform HotPads. More renters are looking to relocate to these cities while locals don't want to leave. HotPads analyzed rental searches on...
With rent growth hampered by increased regulations, it's more important than ever for landlords to minimize potential losses. Tenant fraud, property damage, and tenant defaults are the main reasons for income loss. Here are three strategies that can help minimize...
Are you a landlord or a banker? The distinction may not be so clear to your tenants. With increasing rental regulations and political rhetoric painting tenants as victims and access to rental housing as a right, bad tenants are emboldened to take advantage by signing...
The landlords of an apartment building in Oshawa were fined $30,000 after firefighters helped a blind tenant escape during a fire. The building had no functioning smoke detectors and other safety concerns. According to a report, the judge found this close call too...
Showing a rental property can be a time-consuming exercise, one that a landlord does not want to have to repeat several times before securing a new tenant. Here are some tips that can maximize effectiveness and efficiency when it comes to property tours: Prequalify...
A landlord in New York has agreed to pay a $5,000 fine after a complaint that he provided tenants with a lease agreement that contained illegal provisions. According to the state's attorney general, the landlord's lease included provisions that: Denied tenants the...
A federal appellate court has found that a landlord could be liable for discrimination by failing to protect a tenant who was being harassed by another tenant. The case arose after an African-American man rented a New York apartment. The first several months of the...
Facebook is changing its rental ad platform after a barrage of lawsuits claiming housing ads on the social media site are discriminatory. Landlords who advertise on Facebook should be aware of potential liability for discrimination that can occur when selecting groups...
Portland, Oregon lawmakers are proposing a new rental reform that could force landlords there to adopt a "low-barrier" tenant screening policy and diminish landlords' rights with respect to security deposit deductions. The measure, dubbed "FAIR", would limit what...
Previous landlord references are a staple of tenant screening. But are landlords taking advantage of this tool? One landlord says this: "I’ve probably had 10 separate former tenants in my property in the past 10 years, including families and roommates. Two...
Recent reports from landlords detail a tenant who abandoned the property and turned off the heat, causing all the pipes to burst, a tenant who stole all the furnishing from a furnished apartment, and tenants who didn't pay rent for months. Wouldn't you like to avoid...
Long-term tenants now are a reality for many landlords in Canada. And that's a good thing -- for the most part. However, there are some downsides when tenants stay year after year. Tenants can gain a sense of entitlement -- "I'm paying your mortgage, so the least you...
Property maintenance reduces liability for injuries, extends the life of appliances, reduces costs of repairs, and enhances the overall property value. But to do it right, you need a plan: Create a Maintenance Plan A good baseline for developing a property maintenance...
Holes in the doors. Piles of trash. Months of rent unpaid. It's difficult to witness the damage caused by a bad tenant. It's also scary to think how often these tenants get away with it. Landlords need to stick together to create barriers that discourage tenants from...
