We all know that not everyone is as honest as they seem. Some people do live their life without cheating their way through everything. Unfortunately, some tend to do the wrong things to get what they want as well. In real estate, you might come across tenants who will attempt to scam you and the landlords. Rental scams do exist, and you must know when to spot a scammer.

When can we encounter tenants who scam landlords and agents? During tenant screening, you might experience these people. It is crucial to perform a thorough tenant screening of the applicants. We all wish it is easy as finding someone who can pay the monthly rent. Sadly, it is not that simple. A good tenant pays the rent on time and is also honest and reliable. But how do you know if someone is trying to scam you?

Advance Cash

One example of a scam is when an applicant offers to pay several month’s worths of rent to let them move in immediately. Doesn’t it sound tempting? The property is no longer vacant, and a bonus, a few months are paid. Here’s what might happen:

• The tenant might sublet the property and charge a substantial amount to pay as rent for five or six months. Since they paid in advance, there is no reason to go to the property and ask for payment. By the time the landlord goes, a different tenant has occupied the property. That tenant will also refuse to pay the unpaid rent because they already gave their fee in advance.

• The tenant will move in and will stop paying rent when the time comes. For example, he paid four month’s worth of rent. By the fifth month, the landlord will anticipate getting another payment. The scammer will refuse, and the landlord will have to evict the tenant. However, the eviction process will take time, and the tenant can continue to occupy the property rent-free.

Simply put, any applicant who will try to change the terms of screening by offering money is suspicious. You should watch out for these types of applicants. The landlords should, too.

Document Fabrication

Another technique is fabricating or faking documents to try and deceive landlords. In this age of technology, a lot of things are made possible and easy. Scammer applicants will try to submit fake receipts and statements to help convince the landlords and agents. When in doubt, a landlord can hire a tenant screening service to do the job. He can make sure that a meticulous background check will be conducted.

Fake Landlords

Part of screening tenants is calling previous landlords, based on their rental history. You might have done this many times before, and you already know what to ask them. Interviewing a past landlord can help you get an initial idea about the applicant. Unfortunately, scammers will try to mislead you with the so-called ‘fake landlords.’ They will provide a fake landlord, usually a friend, to talk to you. The way to avoid this is not to inform them that you are doing a background check. Try to inquire about a vacancy. If they seem confused about it, chances are they are fake.

If possible, do not limit yourself to only reaching out to their most recent landlord because there is a possibility that they will give you positive feedback about the tenant because they want to get rid of the tenant themself. It could be their way of passing on the burden from them to you.

There are several other scams out there, and you should avoid them as much as possible. It is your job to find good tenants for your landlords, and that is a huge responsibility. Tenants screening will help you weed out the swindlers, so do not take it for granted.

Several applicants are surely going to reach out, more so if you use a website like Padleads to post the property listings. Not only are you able to post about properties. You can also syndicate listings to other websites to catch the attention of more people. But you have to be careful though. You might have a scammer in your hands.