Things to Know Before You Start Your Search
How Much You Can Afford
In order to qualify to rent, you will have to show proof of income. Additionally, you will want to ensure that you make at or around 3 times the monthly rent. For example: If rent is $1000 per month, you need to make $3000 per month to qualify.
Your Credit Score
…and the credit score of anyone that will be signing the lease. Most property owners will be looking for a credit score of 600 or higher to help them determine if you have a history of being responsible with your debts.
Your Background
…and the background/criminal history of anyone that will be signing the lease. A background check will provide landlords with prior evictions, arrests, convictions and pending cases. A
The Benefits of Getting Pre-Qualified and Working with a REALTOR®
Faster and Targeted Results
Working with a licensed REALTOR® can expedite your search for a home to rent, providing you with targeted results based on your unique qualifications. Something that sets us apart from other Real Estate Agents is our large network of property managers and private owners that we work with getting renters for every single day. This network allows us to stay informed about upcoming rentals before they hit the market, but more importantly, identify rentals that meet your criteria.
Saving You Time, Money and Stress
Alleviate some of the stress that goes into finding the right home by working with a licensed Realtor. Not only could it save your bank account from paying fees on applications that may not get approved, but when you get pre-qualified through our rental process, we are able to send your rental profile out to our network of landlords looking for qualified tenants. Even if you have some challenging qualifications, we can directly reach out to these owners to see if they have anything available and get answers up front on whether they can work with your situation or not.
Pre-Qualification Facts
What does being pre-qualified mean?
Being pre-qualified means that you have disclosed some key information about your personal history to a licensed Realtor. WE WILL NOT ASK YOU to provide any sensitive documentation like bank statements, social security numbers, driver’s license, or anything of that nature. We will ask you to truthfully answer a few baseline questions like, what you believe your credit score to be, what your monthly gross income is, will there be any issues on a background check etc. This is all information that a property manager will be asking for and finding out on your rental application, but in much more detail. Letting your Real Estate Agent know ahead of time about your credit, financial and rental history up front will provide them with the tools to find you the best home that will work for you and your situation… good or bad.
What if my pre-qualifications aren't favorable to find a rental?
Most renters know their shortcomings, and we know several landlords that are not as stringent on their criteria as other are. We are able to help most renters find options, but just being honest here, we can only work with what you are able to provide. If you have a combination of bad credit, prior evictions and criminal history, we are going to have a tough time finding you a rental property. However, we have a ton of resources that we can provide you with if it turns out we cannot find you a rental. r bad.