Dilip Barot Landlord in Palm Beach Gardens, talks about lawsuits

Owning property and providing affordable homes to those in need is a great privilege. As the founder of Creative Group in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida I enjoy being a part of the commercial real estate scene. But like any investment, property ownership is a big responsibility and unfortunately can make owners and investors an easy target for lawsuits.   Whether you do business in Texas, Florida or New York, there is often a bad egg that is looking for a quick fix, an easy buck or just an opportunity to take advantage of the situation. And while stories of slum lords and poor living conditions are what make the news, probably more rampant are the frivolous lawsuits filed against property owners and managers that are expensive, time consuming and most often unfounded.  To protect yourself and your property managers from opening your doors to the wrong crowd, here are a few screening tips that can help you find qualified tenants.

• Social Media.  The world has certainly changed. With the advent of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, anyone can post anything at any time.  It can be the best PR or the worst PR.  But business owners don’t need to just sit back and take it.  Reviewing public social media posts of applicants is a good way to identify poor behavior or sketchy activity.  You may even find photos of property destruction or vandalism – a clear sign that they are not the tenant for you.  You can even hire companies like our Etech Global Solutions team to help manage your commercial social media activity.

• Proper Identification
  When you screen an applicant, ask for a copy of a picture ID or driver’s license. Make sure the person in front of you is the same person on the application and credit report.  You would be surprised how many people try to falsify their application esp. if they are a credit risk.
• Open House
  Some property managers find that hosting an Open House allows for an organized way to screen multiple candidates in a short window of time.  Additionally having the applications handy is a great way to spur on a little competition of interested parties and try to get signed leases on the spot.
• Landlord Reference
  It may seem like common sense, but always, always verify the current and past landlord. Ask the “landlord” to just verify the address of the property the tenants are leaving from. You’d be surprised how many bogus reference “landlords” don’t even know their friend’s address or how long the tenancy was.

Signing a new lease with a new tenant is a great feeling.  Assuming you have gathered all the proper paperwork including a formal application, credit check and background check (as appropriate), you can add these few other screening tips to help you pick the best tenants for you and your property.  Creating a positive environment upfront built on trust and mutual respect will create loyal tenants and prevent silly lawsuits that have no merit.