Leasing agents may receive several applications for a single listing. If they’re lucky, they will have at least one or two qualified tenant applicants. Any agent would love multiple eligible candidates to choose from, but that is not always the case. However, it can still possibly happen. When it does, would you know who to approve?

How would you decide if you knew you had several options without regretting it? I know you would feel like you missed out on a good tenant, but sometimes you can only choose one. It’s like a contest where there’s one winner.

List of criteria:

I’ll make it easier for you and give you tips on narrowing down your choices. But first, you should list what you are looking for in an applicant. Usually, agents have the same criteria when they go through applications, such as credit score, income, rent or eviction history, and criminal background. Of course, we would not want to recommend someone who cannot afford the rent or has a tendency to become violent.

Some landlords also have additional items they want to see in an applicant, so you should learn their specific preferences.

Why it’s good to have written criteria:

A written copy of your criteria will guide you when you go over the different applications. You may get overwhelmed by them, and you overlook some of the details. Make sure you base your specifications on the Fair Housing Act to avoid accusations of discrimination. You also have to maintain consistency in screening one applicant for another.

Choosing the tenant

Here’s an example scenario: You’ve gone through all the tenant applications, and lo and behold, you have more than two qualified persons. As much as you want to say yes to all of them, there is only one vacancy. What do you do?

Keep in mind that whoever you recommend will have an impact on the business. The landlord will mostly rely on your judgment. I can give you two techniques to make it easier for you the next time you encounter this dilemma.

Number 1: Choosing based on application strength

You already have criteria that you can use to find the strongest contender. If you have several eligible applications on hand, go the extra mile and look into them deeper. You can also ask the landlord to help you decide because they will become his clients. Ultimately, you may choose someone with a higher income, the closest move-in date, or a better rental record.

So in case, some applicants question your decision, you can inform them what the other tenant has, and they don’t. It is good to have a solid answer if they ask you. You can add a few criteria if you want more basis for your choices, such as a history of noise complaints, late payments, or smoking.

Number 2: First come, first serve

The first come, first serve method is straightforward compared to the other one. Go for the first qualified person to send in their applications, and that’s it. This technique is better if the tenants are equally capable of being good renters.

However, if you use this approach, you might miss out on better tenants. So if the landlord can wait a while, you can use the other technique to avoid any regrets. Getting a good tenant is worth the effort and time.

And speaking of things that are worth it, you can go and sign up for Padleads. It’s a website for leasing agents like you to advertise their vacancies. You can create your property listings, post them, and syndicate them to other pages online. With this, you can attract hundreds of would-be tenants all over the country. Having multiple eligible tenants will become even more possible.