Tenant Screening – How to Get Applicants to Pay

As a landlord, your job is to provide a home to any respectable tenant who meets your requirements. However, when prospective tenants are looking for a home, why should you, the landlord, pay for a screening for someone who may or may not become your tenant? Here is a look at how to get your potential tenants to pay the tenant screening bill.

In all honesty, by having the applicant pay an application fee, they are more likely to wait for an answer rather than go put in applications with other landlords.

Let them know that they want to live in your home and that it is unfair to you if you pay for the screening and they do not become your tenants. Let them know that they are looking for a home and this is simply a part of the cost to do so. Once they have paid the application fee, you as the landlord should initiate the background check process.
It is better you have a company you can rely on to view the information yourself due to the fact that many people could get their own report and alter it to look like they are the model tenant

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Set the Price Right

If you’re a landlord and you don’t want to pay for your tenant’s screening bills, then all you have to do is set your price, or application fee. If regular tenant screening services cost $40, tell them that you will do it for $45. For $5, this helps cover your time for processing the application as well. Then again, you could simply tell them the direct cost and charge them that amount. However, this is not recommended as your time is not paid for.

Tenant screening is of the utmost importance when applicants come your way. The safety of the community and your profitability depend selecting the right tenant. However, it is unfair that a landlord should pay for the screening. After all, if you got 20 tenant applications in a month, would you really spend so much money on people who may not qualify to be your tenants? I think not! As such, convince your tenants that they should pay and offer them the right price. They will be more than happy to pay an application fee.

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