NEW YORK, May 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A new joint survey from RentRedi, the fastest-growing DIY landlord software that makes renting easy for both landlords and renters, and BiggerPockets, the largest online community for real estate investors, reveals that background checks are the most important tool in a landlord’s screening process. These results, paired with a companion survey conducted by RentRedi alone, provide new insights into how landlords conduct tenant screening and how many use technology to strengthen their approach.
BiggerPockets surveyed its members from April 4-14, 2025 about the most important thing to check when screening a tenant. Of the 2.1K respondents, nearly half said background checks were the most critical factor when evaluating a tenant, followed by a third who pointed to references from previous landlords. Less than a fifth ranked credit scores as the top priority, while 1 in 10 said they rely most on paystub history.
RentRedi ran a separate survey almost simultaneously from March 30 to April 14, 2025, garnering responses from nearly 700 landlords, revealing that most landlords are taking a multi-layered approach to tenant screening. A full 88% of respondents said they run a certified tenant screening report, while 78% said they reach out to references and 61% said they review applicants’ social media profiles. In fact, half of all landlords surveyed said they use all three methods, suggesting a growing recognition that no single data point tells the whole story.
Verification also plays a central role, with 91% of landlords saying they verify an applicant’s employment, while 90% confirm …