I posted yesterday about the new rules issued by the Cook County Board with respect to the well-intended but badly implemented Cook County Just Housing Amendment. Those rules are, in a word, nuts. It is apt to suggest that the inmates are truly running the asylum. Here’s why.
tenant screening
Is the “Application Fee” in Danger?
Proposed Illinois law to regulate rental application fees
Everyone knows the importance of tenant screening. In order to offset the cost of screening “the right way”, many landlords collect application fees. Now, Illinois lawmakers are getting ready to regulate these application fees.
Just one simple check of Cook County eviction court records could save landlords money
I received a great email from a person I spoke to about a landlord tenant issue just a bit ago. We did not come to an engagement on the case, but this landlord wanted to update me about the eviction situation. The landlord suggested I pass along one simple tip to my readers and so I’m going to do that.
Look deeper when conducting tenant screening
A few years ago, I penned an article about The Art of Finding the Right Tenant. While that article remains useful today, America’s troubled economy further complicates the already difficult procedure of choosing a tenant. Landlords still need to do the legwork ensuring that application information is complete, consistent, and truthful. However, because today’s tenants may have a more “precarious” economic situation, Analysis of application data is important. Landlords in 2012 need to think a few steps ahead and outside the box when making their tenant
Quick and simple tenant screening tip for Illinois landlords
Illinois tenant screening tips
Many landlords don’t like to screen their tenants thoroughly. In fact, some landlords seem to require only that the tenant have enough money to pay the deposit and the first month’s rent (some don’t even go that far).
However, prudent landlords are getting smarter about screening their tenants. Picking a good tenant up front reduces headaches down the line. In the wake of the country’s economic downturn, more and more tenants have bad credit, so landlords need to look deeper into rental application information.
A quick note on keeping your head
I spoke with a landlord this morning who had filed an eviction action against his tenant. The case, he said, was not going well and he needed some help. Something he said caught my attention.
Rentals on the rise in Chicago?
A recent blog article in the Wall Street Journal indicates that landlords have “seize[d] the upper hand in [the] apartment market”. This is an interesting development. The article cites the all too common shift where former homeowners are losing their properties to foreclosure and becoming renters. The article specifically singles out Chicago as a place where a renter’s rent is going up from “$765 from $720” because landlords “know they can get more for my unit”. This certainly bodes well for landlords who want to keep their rental units filled.