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Davids
04-26-2011, 02:42 PM
I am leasing a store in a mall. This is my first retail lease. The land lord is asking to fill financial form that includes information about my bank account, savings, securties etc

My question is do they really check what I am writing, are they going to call the bank and ask about the exact amount in my checking and my securities. Are they going to verify the amount? I appreciate your feedback especially from those how have experience with retail lease giving that I am not having any loan nor financing and I am paying from my savings

vangogh
04-26-2011, 08:13 PM
This isn't my area of expertise, but I wanted to reply in the hopes that others who know more might better see this thread.

I don't know that the landlord is going to check everything. I'm not even sure that he can. I would think that might come down to each individual landlord. Honestly I don't really know what they can or will check. The few times I've needed to provide similar information to someone they requested I send copies of my bank statements and not just ask me for the information.

However why wouldn't you want to give him the correct information? Assuming he does check then you're certainly better off giving correct information. The downside of not giving out correct information is you don't get the lease. What's the upside?

Business Attorney
04-29-2011, 02:50 PM
It really depends on the landlord but if you give them information, I think that your expectation should be that they will verify it.

Even if they don't check, if they rely on your information and it is not true, your giving false information might amount to fraud.

Evan
04-29-2011, 06:11 PM
Read what the financial form says. Generally speaking, banks won't confirm an account balance by phone if they're not a signer, and you'd need to authorize them to get this information (which may be somewhere in the contract or documentation that you're signing).

While I doubt if they will verify it, I'm sure it's to make sure you meet general criteria of the tenant they want. If you have only $10,000 in your bank account, they may want to know you have enough cash for your rent for the entire 12 month period, or some other criteria/buffer that you may not know about, in which case this may not be enough. As David mentioned, I'd go on the basis that this is something that can be independently verified, as it's not like these things cannot be determined. If they discovered you did lie, they could probably evict you or sue for some other form of damages, which is not a path you want to go down.

I'm sure one thing they may do is check your credit, which may provide them with a feel of how trustworthy you are and whether they should trust the numbers you provided. If you have a credit score of 500, and are saying you have $100,000 in cash... expect some follow-up.

Davids
05-01-2011, 06:48 PM
It really depends on the landlord but if you give them information, I think that your expectation should be that they will verify it.

Even if they don't check, if they rely on your information and it is not true, your giving false information might amount to fraud.

Thanks for all your feedback

It is not that I am not going to give “correct’ information. It is that I am going to give detailed information. This includes account numbers and social security numbers. I am not implying anything but we all know that some people in real state and banking are not that good and may use the information improperly. Just last week a business broker forged my name on an offer to a mortgage company. All what I did was inquiring about that commercial property. Anyway here is what they are asking for you will notice that they will have my signature and date of birth, bank account number and social security number. Is there a way to let them check without giving them all that information?

Evan
05-01-2011, 07:07 PM
CPA firms send bank confirmations, but those are pointless for most people as it provides a balance at a specific point in time. Having $10,000 on your account on December 31st means nothing when your $15,000 in checks clear on January 5th and you've overdrawn... so unless you know that part of the equation, having some of that information is not helpful at all.

Spider
05-01-2011, 10:34 PM
I am leasing a store in a mall. This is my first retail lease. The land lord is asking to fill financial form that includes information about my bank account, savings, securties etc
.. My question is do they really check what I am writing, are they going to call the bank and ask about the exact amount in my checking and my securities. Are they going to verify the amount? I appreciate your feedback especially from those how have experience with retail lease giving that I am not having any loan nor financing and I am paying from my savingsI think that the information you give ought to be correct information, but if you feel it unwise to divulge certain information then don't divulge it. You might not get the lease but that is the price you pay for your security. You are not entitled to the lease and they are not entitled to the information. If they won't give you the lease without the information, find another property.

nlconsulting
05-18-2011, 10:19 PM
My suggestion is to be open with them. Let them know that you have had an issue arise in the past and ask why they need the information. Often times you will find people are willing to work with you and are simply trying to cover themselves. It's always worth talking about. If you find them avoiding questions or simply demanding information it may be a better idea to look elsewhere. If they seem sincere in the fact that they just need the information to verify that you can afford what you say you can and to cover their bases then continue business.

tuitionsource
05-19-2011, 09:15 PM
In the beginning of my landlording venture I had lines on my applications that requested bank account info. I also had lines for signatures to release bank account information to me for business purposes. I took it to the bank to check on an applicant. The bank would not release any information. They would not even acknowledge to me that the applicant had an account there. The account information and permissions were worthless. I had to have the applicants provide their own proof of incomes to get around that roadblock.

Even with your permission I do not think the banks will divulge any information about you or your business.