9 Ways That Landlords Can Avoid Bad Tenants

One job that just about every landlord would like to avoid is having to deal with bad tenants. Whether they’re making late rent payments, disrupting the neighbours or damaging your property, all sorts of issues can arise that are a serious headache to deal with. While you can’t totally separate good tenants from the bad ones, there are several steps you can take to give yourself the best possible chance of letting to an unproblematic renter. Continue reading to discover nine ways that landlords can avoid bad tenants.

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Check out the best ways to avoid bad tenants as a landlord:

• Figure out their financial situation
• Verify their identity
• Ask to see some references
• Arrange to meet them in person
• Check out their rental history
• Pick sensible paydays for rent
• Avoid cash renters
• Create a tenancy agreement
• Don’t be afraid to say no

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1. Figure out their financial situation

This is one the most important steps to avoiding bad tenants. The last thing you want to do is take somebody on, only to find out they’re unable to pay rent. You should run a credit check on any potential tenants, while also asking for three months of statements and their expenditure. Alarm bells will ring if they’re paying out hundreds every month on credit cards and finance companies. 

With all that being said, you also shouldn’t be too drawn in by a tenant’s job status or role. While financial security is one thing, earning a good salary doesn’t mean they’ll make a good tenant. This is why thorough checks are important across the board, rather than purely financial ones!

2. Verify their identity

It’s worth double-checking that your tenants are who they claim to be. Legally, you have to ensure that your tenants have the right to rent in the UK, which is why every piece of information you receive needs to be verified. If you don’t feel entirely satisfied then ask for further proof. By looking through bank statements, utility bills and letters addressed to the tenant’s previous residence, you’ll get a much clearer picture as to who they actually are.

3. Ask to see some references

Before considering entering into a tenancy agreement with a tenant, you should thoroughly reference them. This process should include the following:

• Credit checks
• Current employment status and employment history
• Any current and previous rental details
• Employment references
• Landlord references

One way you can ensure you’re speaking to the person they claim to be is by directly calling a previous landlord or agent, rather than a direct line. Ask simple and straightforward questions while being clear that you’re only interested in letting your property to trustworthy tenants.

4. Arrange to meet them in person

Simply put, you can get a much more accurate sense of a person by meeting them in person, as opposed to on the phone or over email. Though this isn’t foolproof, meeting one-on-one with a prospective tenant will give you a better idea of who they are and what they’re like. 

When meeting at the property they’re looking to rent, we’d recommend showing them around while asking questions about who they are, what they do and why they’re looking to move there. This way, you should be able to suss out if they’re being authentic or not.

5. Check out their rental history

Did you know that some websites actually allow you to research a tenant’s rental history and see where they lived and when? While everyone’s circumstances are slightly different and renters are unlikely to stay in the same place for years on end, you should be slightly concerned if you notice that a prospective tenant has hopped from property to property every six or so months. If this is the case, then you need to question how long they intend on spending in your property, and whether they’re usually convicted due to bad behaviour or late rental payments.

6. Pick sensible paydays for rent

You should do everything you can to make it easy for your tenants to pay you on time. While it is ultimately the tenant’s responsibility to pay rent, making it easier for them to plan and budget will definitely end up working in your favour. For example, if your tenants are paid at the end of the month (which tends to be the case for most people), then you should have the rental due date line up with this payday.

7. Avoid cash renters

Cash renters are often a very tempting prospect, especially when they offer several months of rent in advance. This is a temptation that should be avoided however, as there’s often an underhand reason for them doing this that could come back to haunt you.

This cash renter could:

• Be undertaking illegal activity in the property – so doesn’t want to be disturbed by the landlord
• Have a terrible renting history, so is offering a large sum of cash to divert attention away from this

While these won’t always be the case, you should definitely remain wary when it comes to cash renters.

8. Create a tenancy agreement

Not only is a tenancy agreement a landlord document that you need to provide to ensure tenant rights, it’s one that’ll protect you against poor tenant behaviour. Every tenancy agreement should outline what’s expected of your tenants and what you consider to be unacceptable behaviour. Until the tenancy agreement has been signed by yourself and your tenants, don’t accept a tenant or hand over the keys to the property. It’s a risk that isn’t worth taking.

9. Don’t be afraid to say no

It’s important to bear in mind that you don’t have to say yes to the first tenant that comes along. While leaving a property vacant does cost, it doesn’t change the fact that quickly finding a bad tenant ends up being more expensive in the long run than finding a good tenant slowly. This is why you should take your time when vetting potential tenants to make sure they’re a good fit for the property.

If a prospective tenant is clearly interested but you’re having doubts for whatever reason, then don’t be afraid to say no. You’re under no obligation to take any individual tenant on. All you need to do is inform the interested applicant that you have several viewings booked and wish to see them all through before making a decision.

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While this is by no means a comprehensive list, it should help you make sensible decisions when meeting new prospective tenants. 

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