- 1). Ask the landlord whether or not the rental property is in danger of foreclosure. Follow up by checking public records. Obtain the legal address of the property you wish to rent, and then contact your county assessor's office online. Enter the address and property owner's name to receive its parcel number. Call or go to your county recorder's office, and ask its staff to do a public records search on that parcel number. The results of the search will show all default notices, trustee sales and foreclosure filings for that property.
- 2). Check whether or not the landlord has a criminal record or criminal charges pending. A landlord with a criminal record or criminal charges pending can spell trouble for you as a perspective tenant. Many states allow you to do a criminal records search online. Several states, however, charge a small fee. To do a criminal records search, simply type the name of your state and "criminal records search" into your favorite search engine. Choose the link with a ".gov" extension, and use that website to check your landlord.
- 3). Ask the landlord for references from former tenets. If the landlord will not provide references, don't rent from that landlord. If, however, the landlord provides references, call them. Ask them how the landlord responded to repairs and late rent, and why they moved.
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