Chicago Landlord

I can't say this enough. I know we all want to believe that we can sense who are the good people and we want to trust our instincts, but people make careers out of taking advantage. You have your prospective tenants fill out an application and then you do nothing with the information! It is important to verify all the information you ask for. Always call previous landlords and check job references. I am always surprised when a prospective tenant gives me a bad reference. I can only guess that they think I will not call. I recommend that you ask very specific questions. Have they ever paid late? Do they owe any money? Are there any lease violations or noise disturbances?
You need to accept that you will still make a mistake or a good tenant will fall on hard times. It happens to every landlord sooner or later. Checking all the references you have and running credit if you can will help you avoid many bad tenants.