Investopedia picked as the best tenant screening service because of its competitive pricing, a broad collection of tenant screens and reports, and rapid response time. If you’re looking for a service that strictly offers tenant background services, consider ♎RentPrep. If you’re looking to cover many properties, TurboTenant is worth evaluating.
The best tenant screening services offer a broad range of screens and reports, package pricing that matches your needs, and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) compliance.
Investopedia researched and evaluated 12 tenant screening and property management services to help our readers find the service best for their needs.🐓
Best Tenant Screening Services
- Best Overall: Avail
- Best for Comprehensive Reports: 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: Zillow Rentals
- Best Value: Innago
- Best for Multiple Properties: 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: TurboTenant
- Also Good for Multiple Properties: 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网: RentPrep
Best Overall : Avail
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Avail
- Base Package Cost: $0 (Tenant pays)
- FCRA Compliant: Yes
- Property Management Tools: Yes
Avail is a property management applicati🧔on that features robust tenant screening as one of its tools. TransUnion tenant screening is free to landlords and paid for by tenan🍌ts.
Comprehensive screening
Competitive pricing
Lots of customer service options
Pricing variability
Applicant initiated screening process
Avail is an all-in-one property management system with a robust tenant screening system (via TransUnion). Two s🧸ervice tiers are available: $0 or $9 per month.
As the landlord, you can pay for the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:TransUnion background check o༺r pass that cost on to your applicant. Either way, the system will prompt the applicant to acquiesce to the screening, which may introduce some friction. You can choose the depth and breadth of the check, from a simple one covering the applica♔nt’s job and rental histories as well as income verification to a full screening that includes a criminal background check, credit history, evictions, and more.
Avail’s website includes a helpful educational resources section with state-by-state landlord and tenant laws, guides to various business aspects, and advice on lease terms and forms. You’ll also find a help center for landlords and ten𒁃ants with explainers on the software and the business.
You can get assistance via an online chatbot. Telephone aওnd email support are available, too.
Avail was founded to provide landlords with a property management solution (including tenant scree♛ning) and was purchased by Move, Inc, in 2020. It is headquartered in Chicago.
Best for Comprehensive Reports : Zillow Rentals
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Zillow
- Base Package Cost: $0 (Tenant pays)
- FCRA Compliant: Yes
- Property Management Tools: Limited
𓃲Zillow Rentals offers property listing services on its popular real estate advertising service and provides applicant screening when potential tenants show interest. Tenant screening is free for landlords; applicants pay a $35 fee that’s good 🥃for a month’s worth of screenings.
No cost to landlords
Streamlined application system
Comprehensive credit and background check
Few property management tools
Limited customer service options
You may already know Zillow as a resource for placing rental property listings. Zillow Rentals is its rental property listing and management arm, and it offers comprehensive applicant screening, at no cost to landlords (applicants pick up the $35 fee). Credit reports are provided by Experian, one of the three leading credit bureaus. Background, criminal, eviction, and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:judgments and liens screening is provided by backgꦿround report specialist🦩s, CIC.
In addition to listings and tenant screening, Zillow also provides lease management, digital signatures, and rent payment processing. But that’s the limit of its property management tools. If yoꦑu need other services, like a maintenance ticketing system, you’ll need to look elsewhere.
Another downside with Zillow Rentals is the limited customer service contact options: Email is your only option. Our researchers gave Zillow Re🌼ntals a 4 (out of 5) for its educational resources, includꦯing helpful articles and links to related Zillow Rental services.
Founded in 2006,🙈 Zillow is headquartered in🦂 Seattle.
Best Value : Innago
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Innago
- Base Package Cost: $0 (Tenant pays)
- FCRA Compliant: Yes
- Property Management Tools: Yes
Innago gets the nod for best value based on the comprehensiveness of its entry-level property management services bund🌱le, which includes tenant screening (and zero-cost-to-landlord).
Comprehensive tenant screening
Free basic bundle
Property management services
Limited customer service options
When we added up all the tenant screening services for each of the companies we reviewed and compared it to cost, Innago came out on top. The application also offers a complete bundle of 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:property management services, from listings tꦺo leases to rent payment trac🀅king. It even handles financial reporting.
Tenant screenings include criminal, credit, and eviction historꩲy (for a $30-$35 fee, paid for by the applicant). Income verification is available for an additional $10 fee. Background checks, which are FCRA compliant, come bac꧃k within a few hours.
Customer service contact options are limited to email and telephone, but Innago does provide dedicated support reps. Our researchers gave Innago🌺 a 4 (out of 5) for its educational resources. New and learning landlords will finജd case studies, ebooks, roundups of state landlord-tenant laws, and more.
Innago was founded in 2017 and is headquarteꦓred in Cincinnati, Ohio.♛
Best for Multiple Properties : TurboTenant
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TurboTenant
- Base Package Cost: $0 (Tenant pays)
- FCRA Compliant: Yes
- Property Management Tools: Yes
TurboTenant is a complete property management application that offers robust, FCRA-compliant tenant screenin𒊎g and no cap on the numbe🌠r of properties you can manage.
Unlimited properties
Comprehensive tenant screening
Property management tools
Limited customer support (on free plan)
Turbo𝓡Tenant is a complete property management application that includes robust tenant screening and unlimited properties, even with the free plan. The $12.42 Premium monthly plan reduces your tenant’s screening cost from $55 to $45. The landlord can choose to pay for the fee, instead. Screening includes a credit score, credit history, criminal records, past evictions, and income verification. Credit details are provided by TransUnion.
TurboTenant’s suite of property management tools and services is vast, from listings to maintenance requests to rent collection. Our researchers were impressed with the collection of educational resources, giving it a score of 5 (out of 5) in our ratings. Resources include calculators, videos, 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体𝔉彩网:state-by-state landlord-tenant laws, ebooks, and more.
The free tier offers a lot of services and resources, but customer support is limited to chat and email (and in app help resources). Paid ti🅘ers both include phone support and expedited rꦚesponse times.
TurboTenant is headquartered in Fort Collins, Colo., and was founded in 2015.
Also Good for Multiple Properties : RentPrep
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澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:RentPrep
- Base Package Cost: $29
- FCRA Compliant: Yes
- Property Management Tools: No
RentPrep is our list's only “pure” tenant screening service. Its custom package offers screening services at discount rates to landlords with 50 or more properties. Three pricing tiers offer different levels and types of screening services.
Tenant screening specialist
Human screeners
Enterprise discounts
Confusing product tiers
No package pricing (except “Custom”)
Limited tenant pay
If you have a lot of properties to manage a൲nd only need tenant screening, RentPrep’s Custom product can help you save on screening costs with bulk discounts. 𓃲In addition to Custom, RentPrep offers three tiers of service:
- Credit Report Only: $29. This automated report includes a TransUnion credit report, proprietary “ResidentScore,” and bankruptcies. No tenant pay option with this bundle.
- Full Background Check: $29. To build this report, a human screener reviews criminal records, evictions, judgments and liens, SSN verification, and more. Income verification is available for an additional $10. Tenant pay is available.
- Complete Screening Package: $49. This package combines credit and background check bundles, including a human screener. Income verification is an additional $10. Tenant pay is available.
Unlik෴e the other services we reviewed, RentPrep features FCRA-certified screeners who compile and review its tenant♏ background reports. However, the credit report-only package is automated.
RentPrep offers plenty of customer support options via phone, live online chat, and email, Monday through Friday. Chat and email are available d🌃uring limited hour𓃲s on Sundays.
RentPrep was f♚ounded in Buffalo, New York, in 2007 as Fidelis Scre💦ening Solutions. Today, it is a subsidiary of Roofstock.
Compare the Best Tenant Screening Services
Company | Best for | Base Package Cost | FCRA Compliant | Property Management Tools |
---|---|---|---|---|
Best Overall | $0 (Tenant pays) | Yes | Yes | |
Comprehensive Reports | $0 (Tenant pays) | Yes | Limited | |
Best Value | $0 (Tenant pays) | Yes | Yes | |
Best for Multiple Properties | $0 (Tenant pays) | Yes | Yes | |
Also Good for Multiple Properties | $29 | Yes | No |
Why Trust Us
Investopedia collected and analyzed over 460 key data points from 12 leading tenant screening and property management services to evaluate the most important factors for readers choosing tenant screening services. We used this data to review each company based on cost, screening and reporting capabilities, reputation, and other factors. Investopedia developed this proceܫss to provide an unbiased, comprehensive review to ensure our readers make the right decision for their needs. Investopedia launched in 1999 and has been helping readers find the best accounting software for small businesses since 2020.
How We Choose th♊e Best Tenant Screening Services
To evaluate tenant screening services, we collected hundreds of data points across 12 companies that provide tenant screening services. We researched and evaluated fees, screens and reports, customer experience, 🧜additional features, and company reputation. To rank the lenders and to generate Investopedia’s star ratings, we weighted the data we collected, grouped into five broad areas:
- Cost: 20%
- Screening and Reporting: 37%
- Additional Features: 7%
- Customer Experience: 17%
- Reputation: 19%
To maintain the integrity of the data follo🌺wing collection🍬 and analysis, Investopedia’s compliance team monitors changes to key details, like interest rates and fees. Compliance team members then update our pages to ensure they are accurate as of the date on the byline.
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