Employment Verification’s Function in Tenant Screening: A Balance of the Advantages and Risks for Property Managers
Employment verification is a crucial process for property managers to ensure tenants have sufficient finances to pay rent on time. They contact applicants’ employers to assess their employment status, income history, and rent obligations. However, this practice raises ethical, legal, and effective questions that must be carefully considered before directly approaching applicants at work.
Employment verification processes provide property managers with a more thorough picture of a tenant’s financial stability, giving property managers peace of mind in knowing an applicant has enough stable income to pay rent each month. Verifying details directly with employers helps prevent fraudulent pay stubs or false financial statements submitted by tenants claiming to rent an apartment from them.
Employment verification is a crucial process for property managers and landlords to assess tenants’ stability, income fluctuations, and reliability. It uses data from governmental bodies or the Bureau of Immigration Services to ensure legal compliance and prevents legal complications by ensuring no illegal tenants rent from property managers.
Employment verification can be intrusive and frustrating for tenants, especially if employers refuse to share job-related details with third parties. To address this, property management companies can require applicants to sign a written consent form, allowing tenants to know what’s coming and have their consent beforehand. This helps mitigate concerns and ensures tenant satisfaction.
Calling an employer may not always be beneficial. Due to company and privacy policies, many employers cannot or are unwilling to provide accurate or complete details on an employee’s salary or job status, making it hard for a property manager to make an informed choice. In certain instances, employers only confirm an employment confirmation without providing details on income or job stability; severely hampering verification processes and decreasing effectiveness and efficiency.
The time and effort required can also be an obstacle, particularly if managing multiple applications simultaneously. Contacting employers takes time, and depending on their response or need for additional time, gathering information required by landlords/tenants can cause additional frustration during application processing, especially for property managers handling multiple requests at once.
As an alternative to asking an employer directly for verification of income, alternative proof such as pay stubs from recent paystubs, tax return statements, or bank statements can serve as reliable indicators that your income has not changed without having to contact your employer directly. Some applicants also provide references from former landlords or co-workers which provide more insight into their reliability as tenants.
Employment verification is a crucial part of tenant screening, but property managers should weigh its benefits and drawbacks before contacting applicants’ employers. While it can assess income stability and address privacy concerns, alternative methods can be considered to ensure thoroughness while respecting tenant privacy.