Ignoring Tenant Verification can Land you in Trouble

Renting Out Your Home to a Tenant? Follow steps to Avoid Further Trouble

Renting out a home seems to be an exciting option for most of us. There is huge demand for rental homes from people migrating to big cities. Home owners may consider it an attractive avenue. Some renters overlook the need for tenant verification and rent out their homes without any legal formalities. It can impose huge risk not only to a house, but also for a landlord. Not doing tenant verification can cause serious legal trouble and you will be held liable for your negligence in case tenant does any criminal activity.

To keep this from happening, you may download a police verification form and ask tenants to fill it for verification before you hand over the keys. Tenant should fill his permanent address and other details. It can be easy for a landlord to inform police if any dispute occurs.

There is no section or provision under IPC which criminalizes non-verification of tenant. However, if a tenant is a criminal or arrested, landlord can also be booked for criminal intent and conspiracy for supporting illegal activity. So, verification is important. 

Ask Previous Landlords

If tenant has previously lived in same city or locality, ask their previous landlords. Also ask for phone number and address of previous employer. They will tell you what kind of person a tenant is. Get all the details to ensure that the individual is safe to lease out the home.

Ask for Personal References

Ask for at least one or two personal references to call and ask about the individual and verify the details. You may verify a tenant from family and friends. If he or she is clean, they won’t argue in giving a few references. However, some tenants may be uncomfortable sharing the contact numbers of their parents. Instead, they should give colleague’s or friend’s details.

Tenant verification has become mandatory by the authorities, police and laws in all metro cities. So, ignoring verification may land you in serious trouble if tenant is found criminal. You should be careful as who is leasing your property.