How To Spot An Identity Thief

Identity theft is growing exponentially! There are plenty of websites and information devoted to stopping someone from stealing your identity -- but how do you know if the person you are talking to is who they say they are? The truth is, identity theft protection goes both ways -- and as a landlord, you must protect yourself as well. Do you check for identity theft when you do your background check? There are about 10 million identity theft victims in U.S. According to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, it takes approximately 12 months for an individual to even figure out they are a victim. Chances are, one of these thieves may apply to rent a room from you! How do you know your potential roommate is telling the truth about who they say they are? I talk about different identity theft protection strategies in my ebook "Room 4 Rent: Turn Your Extra Room Into Extra Money!" such as resources for spotting a fake driver s license or state ID. Don t think that obtaining a credit report is enough! There are other things you should do when performing a tenant screening or background check. Ask A Lot Of Questions (But Don t Interrogate) When you rent rooms, the best thing you can do to spot identity theft is to ask detailed questions on your roommate application. Once you do that, perform an interview and ask them these questions again. Alternatively, you can fill out the application yourself and ask the questions, paying attention to how they answer them. Do they pause too long for a basic question? If they can t answer a specific question, then why? Do A Background Check/Tenant Screening There are a variety of resources you can use to check your roommate s background. If you are charging a tenant screening fee (and you should!) use that fee to check references -- by paying to obtain a credit report or background check. There are plenty of places that charge for that information. The more comprehensive the report, the more expensive it is. Do your research before figuring out an application fee. Keep in mind that most companies will want you to be an established business. I talk about how to establish yourself as a legitimate business in my book. Some questions you will definitely want to ask in an application may seem silly or strange, but help spot the liars. For example: Who is your utility provider? What city and state were you born? Where did you go to high school? These types of questions are not easily obtained by a basic public record search, but are hard questions for someone committing identity theft. My Public Info The easiest, quickest, but most expensive way to detect an identity theft to ask them to obtain a report from My Public Info. This is an online company that provides a personalized report which includes a public record search and credit report. Go online and have your potential roommate get this report in your presence. At last check, this report is about $80. If you cannot prove your identity, you won t be charged for the report (I do NOT have any financial interests in this company, by the way. No stock, affiliate program, nor am I an employee).
In order to get this report, an individual must give their basic information (name, address, social security number (ssn)). This is information an identity thief would possess. After they pass Phase 1, they will be asked additional identifying questions that only an individual would know (such as, "where did you live in 1986?" or "what is the amount of your car payment?"). This information is obtained from a credit report and other public records. The questions are random and the answers are much harder for an identity thief to obtain. You can be pretty sure that if an application can obtain their own report, they are who they say they are. If the applicant does not want to do this, or share information with you, then you don t want them as your roommate. Simple as that. Allow that person to keep their own report, and agree not to make copies. Their report also gives them access to other goodies that My Public Info provides. In fact, EVERYONE should get this background check report to see if they are have become a victim of identity theft or if their information is just plain incorrect. It s more comprehensive than a credit report, so it s to their benefit. Social Security Number Validator -- Look up "social security number validators" on the Web. These validators can verify that the social security number (SSN) used is valid and was not assigned to someone currently deceased. There is also a reference which breaks down the social security number code and you can also verify that person is telling the truth about the basics of their background. For example, most people get their social security number (SSN) at the place they were born (foreign-born people have a special number as well). Professional License Validation -- Most, if not all states have an online license check. You can validate that a doctor, real estate agent, or electrician for example, holds a valid license to practice in that state. If your applicant states they have a professional license, then check. Public Record Search -- Many states have an online search for a variety of court records (for free). Of course, this is a needle-in-a-haystack kind of search if you go state-by-state, but there are companies who will do a comprehensive search for a fee. If you don t have the funds (and you should, since you are charging an application fee), this is an alternative. While yes, you want to supplement your income by renting a room, remember that safety and security for you, your family and your roomates are of primary concern. However, be prepared to meet some resistance from applicants. While your requests may seem initially intrusive, the upside is you will know exactly who is living with you. And your roommates will know that you are a practical and fair landlord. Assure your applicants that you have asked these questions of EVERY potential roommate, that the questions are not biased and you would expect to be asked the same questions (if not more) if you were attempting to rent a room yourself. Also, your potential roommates will now have valuable knowledge and information about identify theft which will enable them to protect themselves. Is that good or good?



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