Running tenant credit is the final step in the tenant screening process. This information helps landlords: Uncover tenant fraud including identity theft and false identity; Confirm the applicant's qualifications; and, Gain leverage for on-time rent payments. A credit...
Category
Rental Property Management Tips
Vancouver to Increase Vacancy Tax
Citing the apparent success of the Empty Homes Tax in creating more rental housing, Vancouver lawmakers voted to increase the tax in 2021, sending an "even stronger message" to owners of vacant properties. This vacancy tax currently is set at 1.25% of the property's...
Rent Control Comes to Nova Scotia — For Now
Nova Scotia's Housing Minister has announced provincewide temporary emergency measures including a limit on rent increases. That rent cap is retroactive to September 1, 2020. Under the new emergency orders, rent cannot be increased by more than 2% each year. The cap...
Alarming Rise in Tenant Fraud
The rental industry is experiencing a significant rise in fraud activity among applicants, that according to a new fraud analysis from TransUnion Credit Bureau. During the period from March 2020 to August 2020, landlords saw a nearly 30% increase in applicants who...
Californians Reject Rent Control — Again
For the second time in two years, California voters defeated a ballot measure that would have paved the way for cities to enact more stringent rent control. In 2018, voters defeated a similar measure. Both propositions lost by a 60% majority. The failure to pass rent...
San Francisco Offers Rent Assistance to Landlords
Lawmakers in San Francisco have passed an ordinance to support landlords whose tenants cannot pay rent due to the pandemic. According to a report by the city's Budget and Legislative Analyst, the eviction moratorium put in place in response to COVID-19 has cost...
10 Simple Ways to Avoid Nightmare Tenants
Major property management firms report that tenant fraud -- rental applicants who misrepresent qualifications -- is a common occurrence. These applicants are the most likely to become nightmare tenants, skipping out on rent, damaging the property, or causing...
Eviction Ban Highlights Need for Tenant Accountability
A retired British Columbia couple in their seventies shared their frustration after their tenants disappeared during the province's eviction moratorium, leaving the fixed-income landlords with over $4,500 in unpaid rent. To add insult to injury, at least one of the...
British Columbia Extends Freeze on Rent Increases
Landlords in British Columbia will not be allowed to increase rent in December as previously announced by the Province. In March 2020, the Province ordered a freeze on rent increases due to the pandemic. Subsequent emergency orders had slated rent increases to begin...
Lawmakers Resist Effort to Seal Eviction Records
Louisiana's legislature rejected a bill that would have prevented landlords there from obtaining eviction records on tenants who did not pay rent during the pandemic. The measure would have prevented courts from reporting eviction cases for nonpayment that occurred...