Choosing the right tenant is the single most important decision you’ll make as a landlord. A great tenant pays on time, maintains your property, and stays for years. A bad tenant costs you thousands in unpaid rent, damages, legal fees, and stress. Groupe Murray shares the comprehensive screening process that protects your investment and fills your properties with quality tenants.
Why Thorough Screening Matters
The difference between a good tenant and a bad one can cost you $15,000 or more. Consider lost rent during eviction proceedings, legal fees and court costs, property damage repairs, cleaning and turnover expenses, and time spent managing problems instead of growing your portfolio.
Many landlords, desperate to fill vacancies quickly, skip proper screening. This rush to collect rent often leads to months of regret and financial loss. Frederic Murray emphasizes that taking three extra days to screen properly can save you three months of nightmare scenarios.
Good tenants are worth waiting for. They pay consistently, treat your property with respect, communicate professionally, and often refer other quality renters to your properties.
Create a Clear Rental Application
Your screening process starts with a comprehensive rental application that collects all information needed for proper evaluation.
Include full legal name and date of birth, current address and rental history for past three years, employment information including employer contact details, monthly income before taxes, personal and professional references, vehicle information for parking management, and permission to conduct credit and background checks.
Make the application available online for convenience. Digital applications streamline the process and allow you to start screening immediately. Groupe Murray uses professional application systems that securely collect and organize candidate information.
Require all adult occupants to complete separate applications. Screening only one person when multiple adults will live in the unit leaves you exposed to unknown risks.
Verify Income and Employment
Financial stability is your top screening priority. Tenants must earn enough to comfortably afford rent without stretching their budget dangerously thin.
The standard rule requires monthly income of at least three times the rent. For a $1,500 apartment, tenants should earn minimum $4,500 monthly before taxes. This ratio ensures rent remains affordable even if unexpected expenses arise.
Contact employers directly to verify employment status, position and length of employment, salary or hourly rate, and likelihood of continued employment. Don’t rely solely on pay stubs, which can be falsified.
Review recent pay stubs or bank statements for additional confirmation. Look for consistent income patterns and verify amounts match what the applicant claimed.
Self-employed applicants require extra scrutiny. Request tax returns, business bank statements, or accountant letters confirming income. Frederic Murray applies higher income requirements for self-employed tenants since their income fluctuates more.
Check Credit History
Credit reports reveal how applicants manage financial obligations. While not everyone has perfect credit, the report shows patterns that predict rental behavior.
Look for payment history on previous debts, outstanding balances and debt-to-income ratio, bankruptcies or collections, and eviction records or landlord-tenant judgments.
A credit score above 650 generally indicates responsible financial behavior. Scores between 600-650 warrant closer examination of the full report. Scores below 600 signal significant risk unless there are documented extenuating circumstances.
Recent bankruptcies, multiple collections, or previous evictions are major red flags. However, medical debt or one-time financial hardships might be explainable if the applicant has since recovered.
Groupe Murray reviews credit reports contextually rather than relying solely on scores. A lower score with steady improvement shows different character than declining scores with mounting debts.
Obtain written permission before running credit checks. Quebec law requires consent, and unauthorized checks violate applicant privacy rights.
Contact Previous Landlords
Previous landlords provide invaluable insights about how applicants behaved as tenants. These references often reveal information credit reports cannot.
Contact at least two previous landlords, ideally going back beyond the most recent. Current landlords might provide glowing references just to get rid of problem tenants.
Ask specific questions including whether rent was consistently paid on time, if the tenant gave proper notice before leaving, the condition of the unit at move-out, whether they would rent to this person again, and if there were any complaints from neighbors or lease violations.
Listen carefully to hesitations or what’s not said. A landlord who pauses before answering or gives lukewarm responses might be diplomatically warning you of problems.
Verify you’re actually speaking with the landlord, not a friend posing as a reference. Cross-reference phone numbers with public records or property listings. Frederic Murray has encountered fake landlord references from applicants’ relatives multiple times.
Conduct Background Checks
Criminal background checks help assess safety risks for other tenants and your property. Balance security concerns with fair housing obligations.
Check for violent crimes, drug trafficking or manufacturing, property crimes like theft or vandalism, and sex offender registry status.
Not all criminal history disqualifies applicants. Consider the nature and severity of crimes, how long ago they occurred, evidence of rehabilitation, and relevance to rental housing.
A 10-year-old misdemeanor matters less than recent serious offenses. Be consistent in how you apply criminal history to avoid discrimination claims. Document your decision-making criteria.
Some jurisdictions restrict how landlords can use criminal records. Familiarize yourself with local laws before implementing criminal background screening policies.
Trust Your Instincts But Document Everything
Beyond verifiable facts, pay attention to red flags during your interactions with applicants.
Warning signs include reluctance to provide complete information, inconsistencies in their application or story, pressure to skip parts of your screening process, offering to pay extra to avoid background checks, difficulty reaching them or unreturned calls, and unprofessional or aggressive communication.
However, don’t reject applicants based solely on feelings. Groupe Murray emphasizes that every rejection should have documented, objective reasons based on your published criteria.
Apply identical screening standards to every applicant. Inconsistent standards expose you to discrimination complaints and legal liability.
Screen With Confidence
Thorough tenant screening isn’t about being paranoid—it’s about being professional and protecting your investment. The hour you invest screening each applicant saves countless hours and thousands of dollars dealing with problem tenants.
Groupe Murray has refined our screening process over decades of property management. Our systematic approach identifies quality tenants while maintaining legal compliance and fair housing standards. The result is consistently low eviction rates and satisfied property owners.
Whether you manage one property or many, implementing rigorous screening procedures transforms your landlord experience from reactive crisis management to proactive business success.
Need help establishing professional screening procedures for your properties? Contact Groupe Murray today to learn how our proven tenant screening methods protect your investment while filling your units with reliable, long-term tenants.
