Social media is becoming a more and more popular way for landlords to screen their prospect tenants , by gathering more information about rental applicants, according to the latest sentiment research from Foundation Home Loans.
From looking at past tenancies to issuing a credit check, it is important to take your time to research potential tenants, but the study shows that more than 10% of landlords now check social media accounts to screen tenants and making an educated choice about who they let properties to. Exploring the worlds of LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, etc seems more like a personality report , however it does enable landlords to get to know better a tenant and make a better decision. Depending on what information has been made available by the individual , there is a lot of valuable information to be gathered such as career history, family /friends , career history and personality . Researches also found that more than 30% of landlords choose interviewing prospect tenants to decide if they would make a good fit for their properties.
Employer references and previous landlord references are also requested by a number of landlords.
When it comes to preferences for tenant types, Foundation Home Loans report that middle-aged couples are favoured by 21% of landlords, with the view that they are less likely to damage the property. This is followed by families with children (16%) as they are more likely to stay in the property for the long-term, and young singles (8%) for the same reason.
However , although social media accounts may not be the best source of information if used in isolation, they can offer valuable insight when set against other checks such as personal references and credit checks. Personal references are chosen by 34% as a happy medium, allowing them to understand personalities whilst maintaining a reasonable distance.
