"Have You Ever Missed a Rent Payment? Do You Smoke?"... Landlords to Conduct 'Tenant Interviews' Too

[Financial News] Starting next June, a new service will allow landlords to check a tenant’s history of missed rent payments, credit rating, and smoking habits before signing a lease agreement. The 'Tenant Screening System,' already common in many countries, will be introduced in Korea. While it has become easier for tenants to access landlord information due to the rise in rental fraud cases, landlords have had limited access to tenant data. The introduction of the 'Tenant Screening System' reflects a growing consensus that tenant information should also be disclosed fairly.

The Korea Association of Housing Landlords announced on the 7th that it is preparing a Landlord and Tenant Screening Service in collaboration with PropTech companies and credit rating agencies.
The core of this service is to provide information that allows landlords to identify potential issues before accepting a tenant.
The service will provide access to the tenant’s rent and utility payment history over the past three years, as well as information on lease renewals. Landlords will also be able to check for common sources of conflict, such as pets, vehicles, smoking, and cohabitants, along with the tenant’s occupation and typical hours at home. Previous landlords may also provide feedback on the tenant’s payment reliability, subletting history, and willingness to recommend them.
Tenants will also be able to check the safety of rental properties through this service. They can review rights analysis based on the Certificate of Registry Information, the landlord’s history of deposit non-return, any overdue national or local taxes, and predictions on seniority of deposits.
Such services have emerged due to the growing information asymmetry between landlords and tenants. After rental fraud became a major social issue in 2021, tenants were given access to information such as the number of properties owned by the landlord, records of deposit accidents, and tax delinquency before signing a contract.
Conversely, there has been no mechanism for landlords to obtain tenant information. Additionally, with a proposed amendment to the Housing Lease Protection Act in the National Assembly that would allow lease renewals for up to nine years, some landlords have raised concerns about 'reverse discrimination.'

Recently, some landlords have expressed frustration, saying, “With the current blind tenant contract system, there’s no way to know if someone with a criminal record is moving into my property.” This has even led to a national petition proposing a six-month tenant internship period.
In many countries, a 'Tenant Interview' system that verifies tenant information prior to contract signing is already standard practice. On Zillow, the largest real estate platform in the United States, tenants are required to submit credit scores, payment histories, and criminal records.
In Germany, it is common for prospective tenants to submit a dossier detailing their income and occupation to landlords and financial institutions. On shared housing platforms like Airbnb, Inc., hosts can also rate guests who rent their properties.
A representative from the association explained, “We are considering first introducing the service on real estate platforms operated by PropTech companies by the first half of next year, and then expanding it to other real estate brokerage platforms such as Naver Corporation and Zigbang.”
y27k@fnnews.com Seo Yoon-kyung Reporter