If you are an employer or landlord, then it can be a good idea for you to perform a tenant screening or employee background check before you make a decision on whether to hire someone or rent to them. When you want to run a background check on someone it will help you to have a clear understanding of the different background checks you have available to you and how they can help you find the right person.

A background check company can take care of performing the check for you and provide you with the findings. Some of the other areas a background check company can help you with include:

• Ensuring you have the persons consent prior to running the background check
• Advise you on legal requirements
• Provide you with guidance with regards to using the reports
• Help you to understand the findings of the report if necessary
• Provide you with findings in a timely fashion

Criminal Background Check

A criminal background check will reveal a person’s criminal history. This allows you to see any criminal offenses they have been convicted of including misdemeanors, felonies and current warrants. Running a criminal background check can decrease your chances of choosing a candidate who may potentially cause you big problems due to theft, a violent temper a drug addiction or other issues. You should understand not all criminal records are created equal. The different criminal background checks include:

• Arrest Records Search – law enforcement arrest records
• Criminal Court Records Search – local, state or even federal criminal records
• Corrections Records Search – prison records
• State Criminal Repository Records Search – statewide search which shows arrest records, correction records and criminal court records.

Employee Background Check

An employee background check delves into many areas of a person’s current and past situation. A complete employee background check can include the verification of one’s identity, their criminal history, their litigation records, medical records, educational records, worker compensation records, employment history and possibly include a drug screening.

Credit Report Check

A credit report check will show you a person’s past and present financial standing, along with their payment history. It will also show you any aliases they may have, past and present addresses, previous employers, installment loans, open accounts, closed accounts and any judgments or liens they have.

Driving Record Check

Driving record checks will reveal a person’s driving record. This type of check is generally done prior to employment which requires driving in order to ensure the candidate is a safe and responsible driver.

Government Background Check

A government background check is done when a person is purchasing a gun or applying for a job with the government. The depth of the check will depend on its purpose. It can be as simple as running the person through NICS or be a very rigorous investigation.

Never underestimate the importance of an employee background check or tenant screening

When you are looking for that right person to hire for your company, you want to use all the information possible in order to make the best choice. Hiring the wrong employee can lead to you dealing with many problems. Just a few examples include tardiness, truancy, a bad attitude, theft, property damage, and even a law suit.

Finding the right tenant is also very important. If you rent to the wrong person you can be left dealing with the time and cost of an eviction, repairs for damage to your property, replacing stolen property, late rent, not being able to collect any rent and other problems.