Question about tenants and length of leases

[justchecking]

Greetings,

I have gotten a new rental property and we are ready to rent it out.  We have some potential tenants, but I wanted to see if other people on here have had tenants that barely pass their thresholds of the application sign a shorter term lease in an attempt to have a trial period and then have the tenants sign a longer one when the trial period is up.  Is this a thing or I am being overly cautious?

[joonifloofeefloo]

I think you're asking: As a landlord, should I offer a short term lease to see how they do?

I wouldn't.
I wouldn't (again) rent to someone "barely passing the threshold."
Unless I'm specifically aiming to offer social housing, to give a person a leg up, I would wait for someone who passes with flying colours.

I've seen people pass a probationary period, then let loose.

Also, please be sure to familiarize yourself with the landlord/tenant laws in your region *before* offering a place. So important!!

[NoNonsenseLandlord]

You can go MTM for a risky tenant, but why bother.  get a more qualified tenant.  If you have a bad tenant, can you afford another $10K+ in expenses to get them out and do another rehab?

A lease only protects the tenant. A bad tenant can just leave, and you have no recourse.  They have bad credit anyway, and do not care if they get a judgment from you.

[tralfamadorian]

If someone passes your requirements and you're not excited to sign a two year lease with them, then your requirements are too low.  There's a reason your gut is telling you it's not a slam dunk.

[Another Reader]

The bar is set too low.  Find a better tenant.  If all you are getting are garbage applicants, your rent is likely too high and/or you are not marketing correctly.

Trial leases are silly.  You can't "fire" a tenant like you can an employee or contractor.  The tenant either will pay the rent and maintain the property or they won't.  If they don't it will be difficult to remove them and the damage will be done no matter how the lease is written.

[Nate R]

As someone currently in the midst of repairing tenant damages so I can (hopefully) sell a rental property, yeah, wait for a better tenant. :-)

[cchrissyy]

no way.  if you're not sure about the tenants, they don't get to live there, period.  evaluate your price and marketing and wait for good ones.