If you’re planning on investing in a Salinas or Monterey County rental property for the first time, like most new owners you may be asking yourself what makes a great tenant?
This is an important question to ask because, in today’s world, it’s so easy for owners to rent their properties on the fly without ever asking themselves more about what they are looking for in a tenant.
In today’s article, we’ll answer the question of what makes a great tenant and provides you with tips on what to look for in a tenant when renting your Salinas rental property.
Tip #1 – Review Financial Qualifications
The first thing to do when screening a potential tenant is to review their financial qualifications which they have listed on their rental application.
During the process of reviewing a tenants financial qualifications, you should first be reviewing their credit history.
When reviewing credit history, even though a credit score is important, you should specifically be looking at things like late payments, delinquent payments, and also their total amount of debt because their monthly debt payments will affect their ability to pay their rent on time on a monthly basis.
After viewing a potential tenants credit history, you should next be looking at their income, they should be earning between two and a half to three times the amount of rent which you will be charging on a monthly basis.
For example: let’s say that you plan on renting your Salinas rental property for $2,000 per month, any applicant that you are seriously considering as a tenant should earn between $4,500 and $6,000 per month in order for you to approved renting to them.
Tip #2 – Check Their References
Once you have reviewed an applicant’s financial qualifications, you should next be reviewing their personal and professional references.
When reviewing an applicant’s professional references, you should specifically be investigating if they are still currently working for the company that they have listed on their rental application and you also want to verify it if they are earning the amount that they claim to be paid on a monthly basis.
After checking on their professional references, the next thing that you want to do is contact their personal references including their previous landlord. The step is important because you want to find out if the applicant has paid their rent on time, was delinquent paying their rent, or caused problems at their former rental property.
Contact 36 North Property Management
To learn more about what makes a great tenant, or to speak with us about our property management services, contact us today by calling (831) 484-4604 or click here to connect with us online.