In the days of instantaneous everything, I've found myself prescreening applicants over the telephone and then giving them lockbox access if they prequalify. I feel like I'll be behind the competition if I don't offer an immediate way to apply.

However, the only way I can think to do this is to use a pre-paid service offered by one of the major credit bureaus. It gets the job done but is a problem because I'm not making a penny off of it. They do give the option for me to pay for it myself, which would enable me to collect an application fee, but I wouldn't be there to collect the application fee. (I don't WANT to be there to collect the fee).

What I would like to do is maybe email them my application electronically (Maybe using PDF Filler as previously mentioned) and then collecting application fees online (maybe paypal, but I'm still unsure which direction to go). However, this would still leave me with the dilemma of where I could get their reports processed electronically and immediately. I have an OLD service I used, but they require the reports to be faxed. It's 2018 and I don't have/want a landline anymore.

I don't have enough units to justify having a dedicated web page.

I prefer to get the money from the people when they fill out the app.

"Oh man, the app fee is $xx.xx?!?!" Flag.

"I can't write you a check, I don't have an account." Flag.

"Oh there's an app fee? Can I take it with me and get back to you?" Flag.

There are some things I don't like automated, because the visual screening aspect of it is important to my process.

Hi Jason, I'm glad to hear there are others who have found the benefits of being "open" for showings 24/7 (sort of). I've been doing lock box showings for (almost?) 5 years now, and had few issues worth mentioning. Save hours of time, gas, hassle...

Master Ben Franklin said, "A penny saved is a penny earned." I can show my house via lock box while doing other things like signing leases. If it frees up time for little or no cost, that is a win to me.

I average somewhere between 30-50 showing requests per vacancy. In my Class C hoods, folks want to see NOW...not tomorrow, not at an open house on Friday when today is Monday. I have lost applicants for taking 3 days to turn around an application they've paid for.

10 miles round trip to a rental * 30 showings = 300 miles. My truck (27 gallon tank), gets about 12 MPG. So I'd burn up almost a full tank of gas. Showings take about 30 minutes. 30 showings * 30 minutes = 900 minutes or 15 hours. Almost two full work days.

Screen x3. (Effort)

I 2nd NE.

I've had a lot of success with lockbox showings and am willing to accept the risk associated with them. I pre-screen and ID applicants after they've passed screening. If after screening I find out they've misrepresented their identity, then I move on. Not a big deal. I'm not going to live in fear of "what could" happen. I'd never make it as a landlord if I did.

However, I'm trying to poll the landlords that already use lockbox showings to find out how they make money from using them, not discuss the pros & cons of lockbox showings. I understand they don't work in many areas but its common around here.

how much do you plan to make? is it really worth your effort?

showing is an expense center since someone somehow has to spend time on it regardless.. Unless you have prospects lining out of the door, who or why would people pay you to see your apt?

Imagine you give me your lock box code for a showing. I go to the house, open the lock box and remove the key. Then I enter the house, call the phone company and ask them to Turn On Service. I then replace the front door lock and remove your lock box. I am now your new tenant.

You come to the property because other people you gave the lock box code to say, "there's someone living in your house and there's no lock box anymore".

So you drive to the property and contact the police. The police show up and I present them a fake lease, phone service that's in my name and a fake rent receipt. Now the police say, it's a civil matter and you have to take me to eviction court.

Credit card door pick? Deadbolt. Pry open Window? Breaking and entering with probable damage. No probable damage with a key given with a key code.

NE, Don, Robert, other non lockboxers:

We who are getting our leads through Zillow and FB Marketplace are receiving 100s of inquiries. These are low conversion rate inquiries. But it is what it is. We deal with it.

Prospects thumb a "I'm interested" button, I thumb my copied reply

When your local CL stops being effective and you remain committed to "looking them in the eye", you too will be required to adapt to different conditions by using different tactics.

Sure thing razor: When showing in person, you're there to collect the application fee. But when we do lock box showings, I'm not there to collect the application fee.

Using the service from the credit bureau, I can have the applicant pay the credit bureau directly, which satisfies the "instantaneous" aspect of the screening process. But I'm not getting a cut of it. . .which I'd like to be.

When I screened the old fashioned way, I'd collect a $45 application fee per person, and then spend $25 (at the time) out of pocket to run their credit. This was slow but it gave me a small profit from every application.

I no longer use the old fashioned way because they require me to maintain a landline/fax line, which I have no need for. I'd like to find a way to collect the fee electronically and then acquire the screening information electronically.

Now I follow.

Here’s how I do mine.

My application is with jotform - so after they view they are sent a text and an email with a link directly to the jotform application.

Once I’ve received the applications I use Square to send an invoice and they pay by credit or debit card. Square gets a little cut but I increased my app fee to cover this. My app fee is $30 per adult So by the time Square takes their cut it covers the cost of the credit report plus a few bucks.

But many (most on some properties) applicants are DQ’d by court records, LL references, or lies on their application and those app fees are all mine.

So I’m not “making money” just because they are lockbox showings but I adjusted my system to make the same amount as I would from an in-person applicant. I put making money in quotes because I would much rather have an occupied unit with a tenant paying rent than I would be collecting app fees. But the app fees of the prospects who are DQ’d before I pull their credit does help ease the burden of having an empty unit.

I make enough money as a LL and in my day-job that I don't need to sweat over not making money on the application fee. Plenty on "low-hanging fruit" such that I don't feel a need to go after the hard-to-reach fruits.

I don't charge the applicants anything over my cost to run the credit/background checks.

Jason,

Ya got me thinkin dude! What a great concept!

Right now, lockbox showings help my business move faster than my competition and keep me my business running without my presence.

Our system to to point them to the website to see pics, video, and a free app. We start screening and if things look good we give the lockbox code.

They are to text us when they enter and again when they lock up.

We average 1.5 approvals out of 10 apps with drivers licenses and toms of personal info, so we only give out a handful of codes.

We don’t spend a minute of personal time on them other than texts until the In Home Visit where we see them face to face.

Perhaps we could charge them for the code or the Visit. Perhaps a “code deposit”.

Right now my approach is ease and volume to find the good ones rather than weeding them out before we even see their info.

I want to know if you come up with a plan!

BRAD

Jason,

Ya got me thinkin dude! What a great concept!

Right now, lockbox showings help my business move faster than my competition and keep me my business running without my presence.

Our system to to point them to the website to see pics, video, and a free app. We start screening and if things look good we give the lockbox code.

They are to text us when they enter and again when they lock up.

We average 1.5 approvals out of 10 apps with drivers licenses and toms of personal info, so we only give out a handful of codes.

We don’t spend a minute of personal time on them other than texts until the In Home Visit where we see them face to face.

Perhaps we could charge them for the code or the Visit. Perhaps a “code deposit”.

Right now my approach is ease and volume to find the good ones rather than weeding them out before we even see their info.

I want to know if you come up with a plan!

BRAD

PS

My topic for presentation at Convention is the creative ways we screen and show. We basically do it the opposite of tradtional LLing and get homes rented fast on autopilot while I play.