Eviction: It’s Part of the Rental Business
While it’s true that 90% of tenant problems can be avoided by ensuring, though tenant screening, that you are renting to qualified individuals, it’s also a fact that bad tenants happen to good landlords. And bad tenants are better evicted than tolerated.
Evicting tenants is not easy or fun. Unfortunately, it is a fact of the rental business. If you’re lucky, evicting tenants is not something you have to do often, but every landlord and property manager faces this issue eventually.
Landlords often blame themselves for being careless or missing a telltale sign that an applicant is going to be a so-called “deadbeat.” However, there are professional cons everywhere—in your town, answering your For Rent ads, submitting applications to live in your properties.
The guy who appears to have a great job, high FICO score and cash in the bank might not be who he claims he is—check his identification carefully, and run an ID and Social Security Number check.
The woman who works in management at the large retailer at the mall could be applying for an apartment that she never intends to live in. Rent to her, and you’ll find her credit-risky daughter living there in a month. Rental agreements and leases should clearly indicate the consequences of such a bait-and-switch tactic. Does yours?
The nice-looking family who moved in two months ago could be doing so well because Mommy and Daddy are dealing drugs out of their apartment. While it is not necessary to run your business within a framework of paranoia, it pays to be observant and to keep communication open with your tenants so you know what’s going on in your rental properties.
If you have problem tenants who have broken the contract they entered into with you, an eviction could be an unpleasant part of your future. Most landlords would advise you to start the process sooner, rather than later.