Tenancy

What you know or what you should have known about your tenants can make or break your investment. Courts hold landlords financially and legally responsible for illegal and violent acts taken by tenants who were not subject to background investigations.

• The settlements paid by insurance companies on behalf of landlords for crimes like rape and assault in the U.S. average more than $500,000 per case.
• The average jury award for cases that go to trial is $1.2 million. (Source: Rental Housing On Line)
• Most state law and courts make landlords responsible for providing protection for their tenants from the criminal acts of employees, other tenants and outsiders.

Landlords may also be expected to protect the neighborhood from their tenants' illegal activities, particularly drug dealing. If a landlord owns rental property where an assault or other crime occurred in the past, the landlord can end up being held financially responsible for the later criminal acts of another including a non-tenant. It may seem alarmist, however, due diligence is a necessity and not a luxury. Tenants injured by criminals are suing rental property owners with increasing frequency.

Reduce liability by taking preventive measures to deter criminal acts and activities. The first step is a thorough background investigation for each applicant. Pre-tenant research protects you from loss of rent, decline in property values, damage to property, civil and criminal penalties, and forfeiture. At Pinnacle, we are investigators, not Internet screeners.

We start with verification of the applicant's social security number (SSN). From the information we uncover during our SSN search, we are able to document any aliases or discrepancies that may be associated with identity fraud, as well as every location that the applicant has lived.

• Based on this information, we are able to do an exhaustive criminal search at the court docket level, which provides information on charges, warrants, and convictions.
• A unique benefit of our firm is that we do not charge for every state checked, instead we charge a low, flat fee, and we can tailor our research to fit your needs.
• Our employment verifications include another check for SSN and date of birth. We also provide research for "developed" character references. This is a unique service that provides 'genuine insights', rather than scripted or rehearsed descriptions of the applicant.
• Within 24 hours, we prepare a report detailing identity fraud issues, aliases, criminal records, and credit history.
• In addition, we offer an online database, which allows you to enter your requests quickly and securely and receive your reports online.