If
you do not qualify under the credit bureaus’ new rules or, if you simply
choose not to undergo the required on-site inspection(s), you will no longer
be allowed to receive the retail credit report of any applicant.
Subscribers who wish to continue to receive
retail-credit-based information about their applicants still will be
required to submit paperwork.
Alternatively, history has shown that a high score or
unblemished credit is not necessarily the best predictor of a good tenant.
These things are not in the credit
bureau
For example, eviction reports, which are very
important to any landlord do not show up on credit bureau reports.
What a landlord is looking for:
Make sure they are not criminals or sex offenders.
Make sure that they don't destroy your property and
leave.
Make sure that they don't sit there as long as they
can and force you to go through eviction proceedings
Other antecedent factors such as a criminal
background check, a check of eviction records, long term residency and long
term employment are perhaps more important than just a credit bureau report.
A multi-state criminal background check is
more useful as people who have landlord problems almost always have other
criminal issues that will show up in a good criminal background check.
The multi-state criminal background also includes at
no extra charge a check of the DEA fugitive list, a Federal Terrorist watch
list, the OFAC advisory list (Office of Foreign Assets Control) , the
Canadian Sanctions list, and the denied persons
list. It also includes a check of the sex offender registry in 44 states.
Importantly, this multi-state criminal background
check is available instantly.
Also, the instant social security number trace is
recommended as this provides you with all addresses associated with a
particular social security number for the past 10 years.
We recommend the eviction report in combination with
the multi-state criminal background check and the social security number
trace.
The combination we suggest such as a social
security trace, eviction search (single state) or unlimited based on
social security trace addresses.
The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) has
always required credit-reporting agencies and tenant-screening companies to
make every responsible effort to verify that customers who wish to purchase
retail credit reports have a legitimate purpose for doing so. Both the
credit bureaus and companies who are resellers of the bureaus’ data are
responsible for compliance.
The entire tenant screening industry is
responsible for enforcing these new rules. All companies which sell retail
credit reports are required to qualify customers and any company not in
compliance with the new rules will be denied access to retail credit reports.
Fortunately, the rules do not restrict credit
report access to any specific real estate owner, investors or managers, nor do
they govern access to anything other than retail credit reports. All other
types of screening reports remain available to customers. Screening companies
also may continue to resell credit reports and credit-report-based
information, but only to those qualified under the new regulations.
All three bureaus have certain requirements in
common for qualification and while the specific requirements of each bureau
vary, two main similarities may be summarized as follows:
On-site Inspections
Real estate owners, investors and managers who wish to
continue to receive applicants’ credit reports must undergo an on-site
inspection of the location where reports are accessed and stored. Experian,
TransUnion and Equifax all require an independent inspection company, approved
by the bureau, to conduct the inspection. For subscribers that operate their
businesses out of a separate location, the inspection is required once. For
subscribers that operate out of a home office, the inspection may be required
annually.
To pass the inspection, subscribers must have a locked
door for the premises where retail credit reports are accessed and stored, a
locked filing cabinet to safeguard the reports, and a shredder to destroy
reports no longer needed. Retail credit bureaus also require assurance that
subscribers are not involved in any side businesses that may not be approved
for the handling of credit reports (e.g., internet locator services, bail bond
companies, credit repair agencies or credit clinics).
Global Tenant Screening has established procedures
that qualify subscribers to receive credit reports from all three bureaus for
a single, one-time fee. In most cases, the fee for this inspection will be
$75.00
Additional Paperwork
The qualifying process also includes credentialing of
all new and current subscribers.
This involves, among other things, confirming the
identity of the subscriber, which includes obtaining a copy of an individual
subscriber’s driver’s license, or a copy of a business subscriber’s business
license.
Proof of ownership of rental property must be
verified.
For incorporated businesses, articles of incorporation
may be required.
For sole proprietors or partnerships, an assumed
business name filing, or individual retail report may be required.
A subscriber’s status as a real estate owner or manager
may be verified by examining a reputable directory.
Currently, the credentialing process is required to be
performed only once for each subscriber.
