FTS Newsletter May 2010

This article features:  Verification Background Checks

We are very busy in here in Cameron’s office helping people make more money. We're excited by the addition of a newest Background Screening Researcher, Lisa Agan. She does background checks for our 4 websites www.findtheseller.com, www.checkyoursitter.com, www.tenantauthority.com and www.trackandscreen.com . 

 

I would like to address the importance of Employment and Tenant Screening Verification Checks. If you are Landlord or Property Owner and considering renting or leasing to a prospective tenant you should include all Verification Background Checks prior to your selection. By conducting verification background checks that include an actual phone call to confirm the information provided you are you are going the extra step to ensure you have been provided with accurate information on the application. It is important to consider that information may be misreported, falsified, or erroneous in regards to employment or character references. You cannot always find out the facts by just searching in a database. When an actual phone call is made you are able to confirm the facts and other valuable information about a person’s character traits, trustworthiness, honesty, etc.

We offer the following Verification Background Checks where phone calls are made:

Education Verification         

(Available at www.checkyoursitter.com and www.trackandscreen.com)

Please note that bulk plan account holders may transfer searches to either of these websites to be used for this search. Please contact our office for assistance.

If you are an Owner, Partner, or Manager of a business in addition to your real estate investment interests, you can perform an Education Verification at www.trackandscreen.com focusing on Pre and Post Employment Verifications.

The Education Verification will include contact with the school or facility to verify the dates attended, and most current level of degree or accreditation reported. There are times when the information provided may be reported differently to attain employment. By checking the education status you also verify the applicant’s trustworthiness and honesty.

If other names such as a maiden name have been used in the past these will need to be checked as well. Please be sure to include other known names, AKAs, or alias names in your order. Otherwise, you may find no records found when in fact they are available under the alternate name used.

The Education Verification Background Check is available for all states in the US.

You should have a release form on file for all verification searches. These may be requested from you via fax.

Employment Verification

(Available at all 4 websites)

The Employment Verification is a live call made to the Employer to verify dates of employment, wages when provided, position, and duties.

The applicant can potentially falsify their employment information and may have recently lost the job, wages may be less than reported on the application, or the position may be temporary rather than permanent. Any of these or similar circumstances could lead you to filling a tenant vacancy with a person who may not be able to pay the rent or less in the near future.

It is also possible that an applicant could misreport the dates of employment in order to cover up unexplained non working periods that someone may not wish to disclose to you.

The current employment verification is one of the most important screenings you should perform. You need to be assured that your rent or lease can be paid before you turn over your keys and property.  

The Employment Verification Background Check is available for all states in the US.

You should have a release form on file for all verification searches. These may be requested from you via fax.

Personal Reference Check

(Available at www.checkyoursitter.com, www.tenantauthority.com and www.trackandscren.com)

Please note that bulk plan account holders may transfer searches to either of these websites to be used for this search. Please contact our office for assistance.

The Personal Reference live phone call may uncover additional information about a person’s habits or problems that they may not willingly tell you about during the interview or application process. This preventative measure could possibly save you headaches, problems, and loss of rent in the future.

On the other hand, the Personal Reference call can put you at ease and give you the confidence and assurance that you are making the right decision during your selection process.

The Personal Reference Check is available for all states in the US.

Tenant Reference Check

(Available at www.findtheseller.com and www.tenantauthority.com)

The Tenant Reference Check is a live call to a previous Landlord and similar to a Character Reference Check. This verification includes the following 6 questions.

1.      The dates rented or leased are verified.

2.      Have there been any late payments, and if so how many?

3.      Has there been any property damage caused by this tenant?

4.      Did this tenant keep the property clean?

5.      Did the tenant provide routine upkeep on the property?

6.      Would you rent to this individual in the future?

As this is first hand information from a prior Landlord and not something you will find in a database, it may uncover valuable information regarding the prospective tenant. You should consider including this search with all your tenant screening background checks.  

Please keep in mind that this ‘reference check’ is different from our other product ‘tenant screening’ which is a national database search from Landlords for negative information, court actions, prior Landlord inquiries, and information such as bad checks, evictions etc. 

The Tenant Reference Check is available for all states in the US.

Please consider the value of these Verification Searches when you perform your next background check whether it is for real estate investment or employment verification.

 

We are here to answer any questions you may have.

 

Debra Buckley