How to Properly Screen Sacramento Tenants to Avoid Eviction

Screening and processing applications requires a lot of time and attention, especially if you want to get good residents into your property who are going to take care of the home and pay rent on time. As property managers, we know that a lot of evictions can be prevented with extra precautions during the screening process. Here’s what we do at Sacramento Delta Property Management to ensure we are putting the best possible renters into our properties. 

Run a credit check

It’s important to read through the entire credit report. This will tell you whether an applicant’s credit history is acceptable for our standards. You want to be careful about renting to people who have a hard time managing money and credit or who demonstrate a history of not paying their bills. 

Verify income

You want to find out how much money an applicant makes, and then you want to see documentation that proves what the applicant says is earned. You can do this by talking to the employer or reviewing pay stubs and tax forms. We require a renter to make at least three times the amount of monthly rent. Make sure the applicant earns enough money to pay rent every month. 

Verify rental history

Whether the applicant was a renter or a homeowner previously, you need an idea of how that person treated the properties he or she has lived in. For renters, we always contact the applicant’s current landlord as well as one previous landlord. It’s important to get a rental history that is actual and factual. If the applicant was a homeowner, we check county records to ensure they did own the home listed on the application. 

Look for red flags

Always pay attention to any red flags that come up during the screening process. These will tell you if the person wanting to rent your home is truthful. You want them to be honest, and you also want them to be reliable. Take red flags seriously. 

If you have any questions on tenant screening, or you’d like information on how to handle the application process, please contact us at Sacramento Delta.