Tenant Credit Checks
Question: Just a general question to all Landlords out there, what Tenant Credit Check Services are you using and what are the associated fees? I am just starting out & need a decent web-based credit check site.
Answer: I’ve had good luck with AmerUSA ($20). This is fax based, not web based. Having reviewed credit reports, the information IS very sensitive. I can understand why they don’t want to be sucseptible to any “spyware” or viruses that may be lurking on your computer. People make whole careers fighting those wars. I believe there are some web based credit check services.
AmerUSA can be contacted at: There is help in understanding credit their rather terse credit reports at: There is a minor onetime paperwork hassle to establish legitimacy. After you get through this, repeat visits are quick and easy. Once you get the credit report, don’t cave in to “sob stories”. Every prospective tenant I’ve had with bad credit had a “it’s not my fault story”. It probably won’t be their fault when they don’t pay the rent, either. People are their FICO scores. I had a chance to spend a bit of time visiting folks at a federal prison about 2 hours north of where I live. I was amazed at how consistent the stories that I heard were. The basic story was: - I didn’t do it – someone turned me in – the cop was crooked – the judge was a **** – my lawyer was stupid – I got a new lawyer now – I have a new trail/appeal/other action coming up soon – once that happens, I’ll get out of the place It is a lack of personal responsibility. That kind of thinking leads to the type of decisions that gets one put in federal prison, and leads to a bad credit score. Filed under: Bad CreditRelated Posts
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