Hi. I have a couple of questions regarding referencing.
The applicants are a retired married couple. I have requested, and they have agreed to pay 6 months rent up front. So is there any point in doing reference checks?
Secondly, I have asked for both of them to go onto the lease, but they are unable to do this because they share the same email so currently only the husband is registered and the OpenRent process requires 2 different emails apparently? Therefore I assume the process will not be able to reference check the wife, but wonder if this is necessary?
What, if any, are the risks of only putting the husband named on the lease.
I would still do referencing if I were you. It checks for CCJs, identity check, previous address check, income verification, affordability check, bank account check etc. You should also be aware that if the they’re a retired couple they are more likely to want to stay much longer, (possibly the rest of their lives). That may or may not suit you. Their income may also be fairly fixed and they may not be able to afford significant rent increases.
I would make them get a guarantor, who owns property in England or Wales. It costs £3, to do an online check of the proprietorship register, at the Land Registry. They may have a child, who could be earning enough to guarantee the rent for their parent(s), if they were, say, two weeks late in paying. Then you could credit check the guarantor and not the tenant.
You would be better off having young professional, or students, than people who might stay forever.
I didn’t bother credit checking two sister student tenants, via Open Rent, which was about £20. I just checked their mother. The Open Rent referencing was very thorough, good value for money and just the job.
The NRLA telephone adviser also said, back in February, that a guarantor, who doesn’t own property, but is a social housing tenant, may still have accumulated sufficient cash, to pay the rent, in the event of a default in rent.