Credit Reports: Do You Know Your Options?
Instant Credit Analysis
Today, tenant credit report screening is easy.
In a matter of seconds, you can receive a credit report for landlords with a green light approval, a red flag decline, or a warning that you may need to dig deeper with a prospective tenant.
In most cases, the automated decision is the most efficient way to receive tenant credit report screening. Many prospects sail through with approval, and you avoid having to struggle to interpret obscure credit codes or comb through pages of data to evaluate a tenant for yourself.
A credit report for landlords has become highly regulated because of frequent abuses and a rise in identity theft. As a result, to obtain a credit report for landlords, a landlord must first be underwritten by a credit reporting bureau. After the underwriting, you can see the credit report and a landlord can use it to screen a tenant.
AAOA has negotiated for you so members can apply to be underwritten, and obtain tenant credit reports. Once you are approved, you may obtain a credit report for landlords via the automated instant decision –a red light, green light, or a caution that you need more information from the prospect about their credit. But some landlords want a closer look.
The Full Monty
To release the full details of a credit report for landlords, regulators now require credit bureaus to physically inspect the landlord’s place of business. The inspector, a contractor approved by the bureau, confirms your identity and reviews your procedures for keeping tenant credit information secure from public disclosure.
There is a one-time fee of $75 for commercial office sites. Landlords with home offices must undergo the $75 inspection annually.
To set up an inspection, contact AAOA customer service at 866-579-AAOA (2262)
Click here to learn more about tenant screening, including a list of what types of reports are available for landlords.
American Apartment Owners Association offers discounts on products and services related to your commercial housing investment including credit report and LANDLORD FORMS, tenant debt collection, tenant background checks, insurance and financing. Find out more at www.joinaaoa.org.
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