Tips on vetting new tenants

I think you must always look at a tenant the first time you meet them as they are out to impress you,you are unlikely to ever see them in that manner again because they want to create a good impression...and you only see the side of them at that first meeting that they want to portray.


I do believe that actually someone other than me is always going to be a better judge of character so will confess to thinking that my tenant find only contract with a LA I have got to know over several years is worth its weight in gold!


They have got it wrong occasionally but there is nothing foolproof...if a person wants you to believe that they are worthy of renting your property they will.


I am also a firm believer in using an agent as opposed to local ads or some of these online services simply because if the cost of referencing is minimal you are opening yourself up to someone who wouldn't look down the agency route simply because they cant afford to.

If as a LL you promote your property cheaply then there is a higher potential for a lower grade of tenant.

There are no certainties and I do have a LL friend who on their first rental went with a large high street agency and installed a family into the property only for it to turn into a cuckooed drugs den 6 months later.


OP to get a good tenant who has stayed 6 years was very good,my advice would be try and get conversations flowing with them about themselves in a relaxed format,thats often when people are the most revealing about themselves.


Hobbies,work,talking a little about the area,local resturants anything but the financial side of things,that can be checked later,how relaxed they are when viewing will never be answered by any form of credit check!

I tend to be there with the letting agent during viewings, ask questions about their situations.

If you want someone long term...

Avoid people that own a house somewhere else or are selling and are moving for work, especially if its a larger house than they need, they will likely only be there short term while they look for somewhere local to buy and will use the house as storage.

Avoid people that have never lived together before, usually they rent to make sure they want to live together and you can end up picking up the pieces when it all goes wrong.

Be careful of strange questions like how often do you do inspections or people who want to take the house without viewing.

My recommendation is go slightly below market rates, that way you are more likely to get a choice of tenants, make sure the property is in good nick, generally that although not for certain will attract people who like to keep things in order, you will likely want to redecorate.

Make sure tenants are aware of what catchment area for what schools your property is in if they have little people.

Agree with checking social media, indeed finding them that way is good. I'm afraid anyone doing duck face isn't living in my house. :rotfl: I'm looking for professional people that aren't always out drinking. I rejected one because the stack of presents around the Xmas tree was almost as big as the tree. I'm not convinced she'd have the money to pay the rent after Xmas.

I'm amazed what people put on Facebook.

I also check bank statements and most importantly take out rent guarantee insurance which also pays for legal costs. If everything else is done correctly I shouldn't need to use it. These companies will chase tenants to get their money back so it will affect their credit rating.

Smodlet wrote: »

I am inclined to agree with this but realise this is not a luxury every prospective tenant has. Those on low incomes/who lack guarantors/large deposits and/or in areas of high demand for rental properties may have to resort to complying with these and even more intrusive requirements in order to secure a roof over their heads.

Yes we're in this situation at the moment, having to move due to a lack of suitable college provision for my (disabled) son and jumping through hoops to move in to a run down, smelly, very small rental that's nowhere near as nice as my current home and considerably more expensive. I've found being on housing benfit a massive problem when it comes to renting and tend to go armed with mountains of evidence that I'm a 'good' person. Would prefer not to have to do it.