RBYR: Research Before You Rent

Michelle Wilson - September 3, 2019

We all have our prerequisites for just about everything in life, whether or not we are consciously aware of it or not. It could be about those we chose to associate with. The restaurants we chose to dine in. We have our basic requirements.

One of the single biggest and most impactful decisions we make in our lives is where we chose to call home. This decision is often slightly stressful and never taken lightly.

Renting is how we often first start out in life. It’s not quite as permanent as ownership but it still demands almost the same requirements as if you were purchasing a home. There are quite a few things to add to the old check list if they aren’t currently on it:

The Neighborhood

It is common for people to first identify the area they want to move to. This typically is as a result of knowing the area and knowing what is nice and what isn’t. But what if you are new? What if you are moving from another part of the country all together for work and don’t really have a reliable local knowledge base to rely on in your network of social media friends? You’ll want to do an Property Records Search on all the apartments you are looking at. If you are interested in renting or buying a property or if you want to find out if there are liens or judgments against a property owner, you can search property records for this information. Property records are legal documents related to home ownership or land. They contain vital information, which comprises reports stating who holds legal ownership of a property, also known as deeds, county assessor records, among other documents. They are part of the public domain which you or anyone else can access them to learn more about a particular property. There are plenty of reasons someone consults property records, like for boundary line disputes or will, inheritance, or lien disputes, to name a few.

Building/Property Safety

If you are moving into a building or a large complex with lots of tenants something to consider is the properties security. Is it a gated community? Do they have posted security at all entrances/exits?

You might try running a Property Owner Search to determine if the property is currently under any legal litigation for issues arising to safety concerns. You can also do local searches using local news sources such as newspapers and local television news sites to see if the complex or building has ever been mentioned in the news.

The Landlord

This is the person you are directly in contact with in regards to your rental agreement. Often they are themselves the owner but in some cases this can be a management team. Either way you’ll want to know what you’re getting into. Consider doing a Landlord Background Check.

If you want to run an official background check on your landlord, there are a few different ways to go about doing it. No matter which option you choose, you will need to collect some information from your landlord. While many legitimate landlords will be willing to give you the necessary information for the purposes of a background check, some may be less inclined. If a landlord is unwilling to give you the information, this is already somewhat telling. They could be hiding something from you or trying to conceal certain aspects of their past. Nonetheless, without the following information, you will have to resort to an unofficial background check:

• Full Name
• Social Security Number
• Date of Birth
• Any Known Aliases
• Address History

This is all the same information that will be required of you as a tenant in order for your landlord to run a background check on you. While some of this information (especially the social security number) is highly sensitive, some landlords will recognize that it is only fair to allow you to run a background check on them as well. After all, you are providing them with the same sensitive information about yourself. If they want to make sure that you are a trustworthy person, it is only fair that you can do the same. In addition to this basic information, you will also need written consent from your landlord to run a background check.

Your Credit Score & Background

That’s right. You are the other half the scenario. After all, where you live is also based on whether or not you are able to pass their application process. How will you come across? Do you know what your credit looks like?

Conduct a Background Check on yourself before going into the application process. Know your credit score. Discover and clear up any inaccuracies you see in your credit report to bump your score. Once you have that detailed information, if you are still not sure how well you will do, ask if they have prerequisites for approval so you don’t take an unnecessary hit on your credit in the event you have to apply somewhere else.

Be Prepared

The bottom line; know before you go. Have all the details about the location you are moving to, the building you are considering, the ownership of the property as well as the landlord themselves you will be dealing with.

Also make sure to go in armed with details about your own history and background so you have realistic expectations and can be the most effective you can be at finding your future home.
Happy Apartment Hunting!