Renters have started to run background checks on property owners, writes The Observer. As the number of mortgages in arrears has soared, tenants’ concerns are well founded.

So what are our options?

First, if you’re renting through a letting agent, ask them what type of background checks have they run on the property owner.

Without landlord’s consent we can confirm that their name matches the one on the property deeds. Log on to Land Registry – information for one property costs £4.

Landlord’s permission is needed for the following checks:

- Basic check for £15.88 with TenantVerify reveals an individual’s credit score, outstanding debts, whether there have been any county court judgments filed against them, and their main residence for the last six years.

- More comprehensive check with TenantVerify for £30.88 gives you the landlord’s contract of employment, earnings and character references.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 26th, 2009 at 1:11 am and is filed under For Tenant. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.