The Money Kings are keepin’ it real, baby!!!

For your consideration: Real Estate Profits And Losses: Your Tenant’s Kids. Scenario 38.

You could spend a ton of time focusing on screening tenants for this flaw or that flaw. Here are some reasons why you ALSO need to take a strong look at their kids (we’re talking little kids this time, ankle biters, the shoulder biters are another topic for another day) as a window to the future:

1. Destruction: Some children are so destructive that they’ll immediately start jumping around screaming and writing on your walls DURING the initial showing with your prospective tenant. If they’re behaving this way now, what do you think the future will hold?
2. Mystery Kids: This one is a good one. The prospect will ask you about the section on the application requiring them to list all of their children. They’ll look at you and say, “You want to know about ALL of my kids, or just the ones that live with me.” Think about this for a moment . . . ALL of his/her kids. How much you want to bet that the ones he/she THINKS will be living with her/him now will increase over time? You agree to two kids and in a year you have six!
3. Kids’ Friends: So you’re there with your prospect. They prospect brings a “friend” along with her kids. The prospect’s kids and the friend’s kids are also friends. The prospect’s kids are quiet little angels. The friend’s kids are the destructive devils. Then the prospect winds up babysitting the devil kids in YOUR unit. Surprise! The destruction meets your unit and its from a kid you never expected to even live there. Keep your eyes open.
4. Hidden Pregnancy: We’re not lying folks. Prospects will lie on their apps about their pregnancy status. We’ve had people wear baggy clothes while they’re eight months pregnant and look us straight in the face and tell us they’re not pregnant. We’ve had prospects tell us that they’re not having anymore kids, because they’ve had their tubes tied. We don’t ask these questions, but it’s a fact of land lording. For some reason, some people feel like hiding their pregnancies or making up stores surrounding them, etc., etc.

Good luck out there.

Keywords: landlord, tenant, lies, kids, friends, destruction