The vast majority of tenants you can expect to meet during the course of your business dealings as a landlord are likely to be polite and happy to pay their rent on time, but for an increasing number of landlords, fraudulent tenancy applications are being made by habitual bad tenants and are becoming a real problem.
As a landlord, you are probably going to meet a bad tenant at some point. They are the ones who move in and within a short time default on their rent payments. But although some tenants DO find themselves in financial difficulties, sometimes through no fault of their own, there are an increasing number of “bad” tenants who made a career out of moving from property to property, having had no intention of paying the rent when they signed the tenancy agreement.
Such tenants often appear to be honest and reputable citizens, but they give you false information when they fill out the forms, usually to throw credit reference companies off their trail, and once they take possession of a property, you will have a fight on your hands trying to evict them.
How can I prevent this from happening to me?
I have said this before but it still bears repeating: always, ALWAYS run thorough identity checks and credit checks on a prospective tenant, and check out references from their current landlord as soon as possible. Just because they look respectable, it does not mean they ARE respectable! Trust your instincts and if you find any irregularities, consider refusing their tenancy application—it is better to be safe than sorry!
