Joyce – I, too, can be pretty impatient and intolerant with people who just ‘want a tour’ without filling out the pre-screener form. I don’t have a magic formula for this. I will say this: In selecting the right tenant, I rely heavily on the TT pre-screener and application, checking references and verifying income. BUT… right near the top of my list of criteria is what I quantify as “People who do what they said they would do”. Or, perhaps, people who do what they are supposed to do. I give heavy consideration to people who communicate well with me either by text, phone or email. I guess I consider that those who communicate and ‘do what they said they would do, tend to be a better risk, at least in my experience. If they’re lazy in communicating, there’s a pretty fair chance they’re going to be lazy in paying the rent, mowing the lawn, shoveling snow, etc. All that being said, I don’t chase after people. If they inquire, then I respond. If they don’t respond, I don’t do anything proactive to get them to communicate. No tenant is better than a bad tenant.
In re-reading your post, I see that you were referring to references not getting back to you. I’ll call back a second time (I always use telephone for references), but that’s about it. References are ONE indicator of many that we use, so, as I’m sure you do as well, I look at the whole picture and yes, sometimes I proceed and begin preparing the lease.
Good to see you, Dave! Thanks for joining the forum, I’m sure others will benefit from your experience.
