• Landlords often avail themselves of third-party organizations to conduct a background check on prospective tenants. The findings of the background check can give you an indication of the applicant's character based on records and past behavior. However, you need to know what to look for when analyzing background check results.
  
  

Verify Identity

• A background check can help you verify that the applicant is who he says he is. Due to identify theft, it's important to know who your tenants are. A background check can reveal if the applicant uses other aliases and whether he's using his own social security number. If other people are associated with the same social security number, it could be an indication of identity theft.
  
  

Current Address

• Use the results of the background check to verify the applicant's current address and who the property owner is. If a renter has problems with his current landlord, she may put down a friend's or relative's address as her place of residence. A background check can help you confirm the information on the renter's application.
  
  

Evictions

• Background checks can help you screen your tenants and minimize the risk of evicting a tenant. The eviction process is generally a lengthy one. According to Market Watch, when evictions are involved, landlords often incur a financial losses.
  
  

Criminal Activity

• Criminal activity is often a deciding factor when approving a renter's application. Renting to tenants with a criminal history could create problems for you in the future. If a tenant with criminal activity on his record were to create problems for other tenants in your property, you could find yourself in the middle a legal situation.