Finding good tenants can be a very challenging process. However, it is very necessary. If you have vacant house that you don’t want to sell – as least at the moment – renting it out can be a great option. But you need to ensure that the tenants you find are nice and accommodating people who will be punctual with the rent and overall add value to your experience. Otherwise, your experience with your tenants can be a nightmare.
While it can be difficult to make calculated assumptions about people, following are a few ways you can find good tenants in Nashville.
1. Study The Laws
Understanding the federal and state laws that cover Nashville landlords and tenants should be your first step if you’re intending to rent a property out. The first thing you need to know is that the Fair Housing Act has specifically illegalized discrimination against qualified tenants. This means that you can refuse to house a tenant based on their credit or criminal record, but you cannot discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender, age, national origin, disabilities, or even family status. LandlordAssociation.org is a great resource to get all the information you need.
2. Research All You Can About Nashville Rentals
If your rental property is in good condition, you’ll have an easier time attracting qualified guests. However, it is also important to set the rent according to the standards of the area. Look into the average rental rates of the area of your Nashville rental property.
In addition to that, try to learn about the average income of the people living in that area. If you try to set a higher rate thinking that your property is in great conditions, you may find it difficult to find the right tenants and that could lead to long term vacancy.
To avoid this, make sure that you rental property meets the fair market standard for the location as well as the condition of the rental property.
3. Advertise
After you’ve learned that laws and determined the fair market standard of your Nashville rental property, it is time to put your property up for advertisement. While you may remember people distributing flyers and stick to find tenants when you were younger, nowadays, it is best to skip these expensive options and jump straight to online advertisements.
It will provide you with much more exposure at a relatively less cost. There are a variety of websites and online forums where you can safely list your rental property, such as Craigslist, Trulia, and Radpad. You can also create a virtual video tour and attach it with your advertisement to give people a better idea of your property.
4. Find A Tenant with Good Credits
By now, you should be receiving various application from people willing to rent your property. While there are many factors that can contribute to making someone a good tenant, the most important aspect is them being financially responsible. If they are responsible with their bills and manage their finances well, chances are high that they’ll take care of the rent on time as well.
First, you need to confirm their income. Ideally, you want tenants whose income is at least three times more that the monthly rent. Ask them for copies of their pay stubs and verify their income with their employers. Afterwards, run a credit check. This may require you to pay a small fee, but can save you from a lot of hassle later on. Sometimes, landlords ask potential tenants to pay for the credit check as well.
5. Run a Criminal Background Check
Criminal information is public record, and can be obtained free of cost at various court house. You’ll need the name and date of birth of your tenant to run a criminal background check. It’ll everything from minor offenses to major crimes the potential tenant has committed.
Remember that some people with a criminal record may try to falsify any information against, so make sure to do a thorough research. There isn’t a nationwide database of criminal records, so you it may take a while to do a complete background check. It may be a better idea to hire a reputable tenant screening company to perform this check for you.
6. Maximum Two People Per Bedroom
If you have multiple rooms to rent out, it may be best to rent out to multiple people as well. However, the more tenants, the more noise and wear and tear on your investment. While there aren’t any hard and fast rules about how many occupants can stay in one bedroom, the Fair Housing Acts recommends what a maximum of two people per bedroom is reasonable.
Keep in mind, though, that refusing to rent out a room to a couple with an infant or toddler may be considered discriminatory. On the other hand, refusing a couple with a teenage kid is considered reasonable. So, while you should try to follow this rule, it is also important to understand where it applies and where it doesn’t.
7. Trust Your Instincts
No matter how much research you do, sometimes your gut instinct can be the best judge. So if you find something off about the tenants despite them looking good on the paper, it is reasonable to consider another tenant.
However, make sure that your refusal isn’t on the basis of discriminative beliefs, as that can cause you to land in legal trouble. Ultimately, you need to do all the screening and research possible, but also ensure that you don’t ignore your gut.
