Tenant Screening Tips for Growing Real Estate Portfolios
Release Date: 07/29/2025
Creating an Exit Plan to Maximize Your ROI
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, Suzanne and I break down one of the most important and most overlooked parts of being a real estate investor: creating an exit plan that maximizes your return on investment. We walk through the major exit strategies investors actually use in today’s market like fix and flip, buy and hold, BRRRR, seller financing, lease options, 1031 exchanges, and portfolio sales, and show you how to match the right strategy to your timeline, risk tolerance, capital needs, and market conditions. We also talk about building your exit plan on day one, why you...
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Setting up Systems and Automations to Scale Efficiently
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we dig into one of the biggest levers for scaling your real estate business: systems and automations. We break down how to move from being the self-employed investor who answers 2 a.m. toilet calls to becoming a true business owner with structure, processes, and the right people in place. We walk through systemizing lead generation, deal analysis, acquisitions, property management, maintenance, rent collection, investor relations, and team communication, and we share practical ways to integrate tools like CRMs, project management...
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Creating Passive Income Streams to Fund More Deals
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we break down how to create passive income streams that don’t just pay the bills, but actually fund more real estate deals. We walk through long-term rentals, short-term/vacation rentals, notes, private lending, REITs and funds, affiliate income, education products, and real-estate-adjacent businesses, and show you how each one can create steady cash flow, better financing terms, and more buying power as you scale your portfolio. We also dig into the tactical side: using IRAs and tax strategy, working with specialized CPAs, leveraging passive...
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Developing A Repeatable Process for Consistent Growth in Your Business
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, Suzanne and I break down one of the biggest unlocks for scaling your real estate portfolio: building a repeatable process that drives consistent growth. We walk through the full lifecycle of a deal, from deal sourcing, underwriting, financing, operations, property management, to exit strategy and show you how to turn each step into a system you can run again and again, in any market.  We talk about practical tools like CRMs, project management platforms, cost-estimation software, virtual assistants, and outbound call partners, plus the...
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Reflecting on Lessons Learned & Planning for the New Year
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we hit pause on deals and dive into something every real estate investor needs to do at least once a year: reflect, reassess, and reset your plan for the new year. We talk through how to review your wins, losses, systems, market strategy, portfolio performance, team, and mindset so you’re not just repeating the same year over and over.  We cover how to celebrate business highlights, identify what actually moved the needle, and cut the processes, platforms, and partnerships that didn’t. We also dig into market insights, changing...
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Why Empty Houses Make No Money & Other Scaling Lessons Investors Miss with Bruce McNeilage
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we sit down with Bruce McNeilage, co-founder of Kinlock Partners, to break down what it really takes to scale a real estate portfolio across multiple markets and asset classes. With nearly two decades of experience building and operating thousands of units, Bruce shares hard-earned lessons from single-family rentals and build-to-rent communities to large multifamily developments and self-storage projects. We explore how Bruce identifies high-growth real estate markets like Nashville, Atlanta, and Columbia, why job drivers and industry...
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Structuring Your Portfolio: LLCs, Partnerships, and Trusts
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we keep our tax and legal strategy series rolling with a topic every real estate investor needs to get right: how to structure your portfolio with LLCs, partnerships, and trusts. We break down how the right entity structure protects your personal assets, improves tax efficiency, and sets up clean estate and succession planning as you scale from one rental to a full portfolio.  We walk through when to form an LLC, how to use partnerships to access capital and expertise, and where revocable and irrevocable trusts fit into long-term legacy...
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Cost Segregation Studies for Depreciation Benefits
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we are wrapping up our tax and legal strategy series with a deep dive into cost segregation studies and how they can supercharge your depreciation, tax savings, and cash flow. Most investors focus on appreciation – but if you’re not using depreciation the right way, especially on larger commercial and multifamily assets, you’re probably leaving money on the table.  We break down what a cost segregation study actually is, which property types it makes sense for, and how engineers and specialized firms reclassify parts of your...
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The 1031 Exchange Playbook: How Investors Scale Faster While Deferring Taxes
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we stay on our tax and legal strategies theme and break down one of the most powerful tools in real estate investing: the 1031 exchange. We walk through what a 1031 actually is, how it lets you defer capital gains taxes when you swap one investment property for another, and why it’s such a big lever for portfolio growth, net worth, and long-term scaling.  We talk about the 45-day identification and 180-day closing rules, the role of a qualified intermediary, and how to move from a duplex into a four-family, commercial building, or...
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How Opportunity Zones Could Be Your Next Opportunity with Tax Benefits
Uncontested Investing
In this episode of Uncontested Investing, we break down one of the most misunderstood tools in real estate tax strategy: Opportunity Zones. We unpack what a Qualified Opportunity Zone actually is, how the program was created under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, and why it matters for investors looking to defer capital gains, reduce tax liability, and potentially eliminate gains entirely on long-term projects. We walk through a real-world example from the Brunswick Naval Air Station in Maine, talk about converting old mills and strip malls into housing, and outline the three big tax...
info_outlineIn this episode, we’re diving into one of the most critical and often overlooked pillars of successful real estate investing: tenant screening. Whether you’re just getting started or actively scaling your rental portfolio into the double or triple digits, your ability to consistently place the right tenant will either fuel your growth or derail it completely.
I’ve seen investors make the mistake of relying too much on their gut, rushing into lease agreements because a property’s sitting vacant, or making subjective, emotionally driven decisions. That’s a recipe for legal headaches, late rent, and high turnover. This episode is all about avoiding those pitfalls with a reliable, repeatable, and legally compliant process for screening tenants at scale.
We cover everything from automation tools to red flags to fair housing violations and we even get into how you can still offer second chances to tenants without putting your entire investment at risk.
If you’re looking to grow without burning out, this is the episode for you.
Key Talking Points of the Episode
00:00 Introduction
01:27 How consistency will help with legal compliance and redlining risks
04:05 Screening criteria: credit, eviction, employment, and documentation
06:54 Leveraging technology to automate tenant screening
08:40 Legal compliance and city-specific ordinances for multi-market investors
09:43 Understanding the cost of vacancy when making decisions
10:15 The role of credit history vs. credit score and identifying red flags
12:27 How to effectively verify your tenant applicants’ information
14:13 Avoiding fair housing violations: training your team and documenting everything
17:01 Why you can’t afford to let emotion or “sob stories” cloud screening decisions
19:02 Second chances vs. red flags: how to evaluate borderline tenants legally and fairly
21:50 Building out a team that can support you as you grow your portfolio
23:54 Resources to help you get your processes aligned
Quotables
“Just because you have a beautiful asset doesn’t mean finding the right tenant is a piece of cake.”
“There should be no gray area. Your screening process needs to be consistent and legal for every single applicant.”
“An eviction on record is a red flag. But don’t just check boxes, look at patterns.”
Links
RCN Capital
https://www.rcncapital.com/podcast
https://www.instagram.com/rcn_capital/
REI INK