Selecting a tenant is a process that landlords take seriously. Learning more about potential candidates can help minimize potential problems.

ProprioEnquête® has a proven track record in this area, and is the leader in pre-rental screening in Quebec.

Gathering information about the person interested in renting a unit before signing the lease is becoming a reflex for landlords. With all the cards in hand, they have the information to select their tenant.

“Doing a credit check before renting is the key to success in real estate. The landlord must qualify his tenants to avoid having to deal with causes of non-payment or finding his dwelling ransacked,” explains Nathalie Demeules, Director of Member Services.

Let us remember that the landlord may refuse a prospective tenant based on legitimate and objective grounds, such as insolvency (poor credit history), an inability to pay the rent based on income, or demonstrated problematic behaviour, such as poor references from previous landlords or unfavourable decisions rendered by the Tribunal administratif du logement. Other reasonable grounds may also be considered, provided they are based on objective and non-discriminatory criteria.

ProprioEnquête® makes sure to evaluate each of these revealing aspects of an applicant’s file. The information gathered is used to support the complete investigation report that will be sent to the landlord.

Connected

The service is available 24 hours a day, every day, online, on tablets and even on smartphones.

“LandlordSurvey was created for rental property owners. It is the only web platform dedicated to pre-rental screening, allowing them to make an informed decision on their choice of tenant,” .

Once on the platform, the landlord only has to enter the information that the prospective tenant has agreed to provide and choose the type of screening desired. Different packages are offered, from the basic screening to the more advanced one. Prices start at $15.50 and can go up to $74.97, depending on the options chosen.

“The full pre-rental screening includes credit report, current and previous rental reference, employment confirmation 1 and 2 when the tenant has two jobs, as well as criminal and Tribunal administratif du logement’s record,” details the assistant director. The most commonly used option is a thorough investigation, which looks at the applicant’s creditworthiness, payment habits, ability to pay, and behavioural history,” she says.

The accuracy of the process is one of the key strengths of ProprioEnquête®. The screening goes far beyond simple web searches and provide the landlord with all the answers they need.

Facilitate

The ProprioEnquête® credit report is different from the models commonly offered. Rather than just having the words “accepted” and “refused” as explanations, users receive a complete, clear and precise document.

“Unlike what exists on the market, CORPIQ provides a complete and detailed report. The results are very easy to interpret, because they are not simply color codes that indicate whether it is negative or positive, but information that allows the member to make an informed decision,” says Nathalie Demeules.

In the event that a user needs clarification on any of the elements, the team in place will be able to provide support. ProprioEnquête® is also one of the tools developed by CORPIQ for rental unit owners. The electronic rental application form simplifies the landlord’s task, who can have the prospective tenant fill out the form directly on their cell phone or tablet. This means fewer errors. The information is then sent electronically to the ProprioEnquête® platform.

“The form, completed with an electronic signature recognized by law, is transmitted directly to launch the investigation. This way, errors are avoided, since the information is not on a piece of paper, but in a secure system”, explains the Director of Member Services.

“Furthermore, in the current context of personal data theft and the issue of their protection, personal information like the SIN is automatically hidden for the landlord and visible only to the tenant at the time of entry,” she assures.

It is important to remember that a landlord must limit themselves to the information necessary to make an informed decision. If, and only if, they are unable to obtain a credit report with the basic information, they could then justify requesting the SIN as a last resort.