🏠 Skip Tracing for Property Managers
Find Former Tenants Who Skipped Out on Rent, Left Property Damage, or Broke Their Lease — Recover What You’re Owed — Results in 24 Hours or Less — 2025
📑 What This Guide Covers
🏢 Why Property Managers Need Skip Tracing
Property managers and landlords face a frustrating reality: tenants who owe money are often the ones who disappear. They break their lease in the middle of the night, leave behind unpaid rent and property damage, and vanish without a forwarding address. The security deposit rarely covers the full amount owed — and without knowing where the former tenant went, you cannot serve them with a lawsuit, garnish their wages, or collect the debt. 🏢
Professional skip tracing solves this problem by finding the former tenant’s new address, phone number, and employer — everything you need to take legal action and recover the money you are owed. Whether the tenant skipped out on $2,000 in back rent or caused $15,000 in property damage, skip tracing is the first step in the recovery process. Results in 24 hours or less. 🔍
For property management companies that oversee dozens or hundreds of units, skip tracing is not a one-time service — it is an ongoing operational tool. Every eviction, every abandoned unit, every lease break with an unpaid balance is a potential recovery. The companies that systematically skip trace and pursue former tenants recover significantly more revenue than those that write off losses. 💰
💡 The Numbers That Matter
The average cost of a tenant turnover — including lost rent, cleaning, repairs, re-marketing, and vacancy time — ranges from $3,000 to $10,000 or more depending on the market and condition of the unit. When a tenant skips out owing rent on top of that, the losses multiply quickly. A professional skip trace costs a tiny fraction of what you are owed — and it is the only way to recover the loss when the tenant has disappeared. The return on investment for skip tracing in property management is among the highest of any industry.
📋 Common Property Management Scenarios
Tenant Skipped on Lease
The tenant broke their lease, abandoned the unit, and left no forwarding address. They owe remaining lease obligations, unpaid rent, and potentially early termination fees. You need their new address to serve a lawsuit and collect.
Property Damage Beyond Deposit
The tenant left the unit damaged — holes in walls, destroyed flooring, broken fixtures, trash left behind. The security deposit does not cover the repair costs. You need to find the tenant to sue for the difference.
Unpaid Rent After Eviction
You successfully evicted the tenant, but they owe months of back rent plus court costs and attorney fees. The eviction judgment gives you the right to collect — but you need to find the tenant and their employer to enforce it through wage garnishment.
Security Deposit Claim Service
State law requires you to send an itemized security deposit accounting to the tenant’s last known address — but they have moved and you do not have their new address. Skip tracing provides the correct forwarding address to comply with statutory requirements.
Serving Lawsuit on Former Tenant
You have filed a lawsuit for unpaid rent and damages, but you cannot serve the former tenant because they moved. Skip tracing finds their current address so your process server can complete service and your case can move forward.
Judgment Enforcement
You already have a judgment but the former tenant disappeared before you could enforce it. Skip tracing finds their current address and employer so you can file a writ of execution, levy bank accounts, and garnish wages.
📊 What a Skip Trace Reveals for Property Managers
| Information | Why Property Managers Need It |
|---|---|
| 🏠 Current Address | Serve lawsuits, send security deposit accountings, send demand letters, comply with statutory notice requirements |
| 📱 Phone Numbers | Attempt direct contact for payment arrangements before filing suit — often the fastest path to resolution |
| 💼 Current Employer | Essential for wage garnishment orders once you have a judgment — the most reliable collection method for employed debtors |
| 🚗 Vehicles | Identifiable assets that can be levied. Also confirms identity and may indicate the tenant’s general financial condition |
| 🏠 Property Ownership | If the former tenant now owns real property, you can record a judgment lien that must be satisfied when the property is sold |
| 👥 Associates & Co-Tenants | Co-tenants may be jointly liable for lease obligations. Associates may help locate evasive former tenants. |
📋 The Tenant Recovery Process — Step by Step
Document Everything
Before pursuing a former tenant, document all damages with photos and video, calculate total amounts owed (unpaid rent + damages beyond deposit + early termination fees + cleaning + attorney fees if applicable), and preserve all lease documents, payment records, and correspondence.
Order a Skip Trace
Submit the former tenant’s information — name, date of birth, SSN (from rental application), last known address (your property), and any other identifying information. Results delivered in 24 hours or less with current address, phone, employer, and more.
Send a Demand Letter
With the current address in hand, send a formal demand letter to the tenant at their new address via certified mail. Itemize all amounts owed, give a deadline for payment (typically 10-30 days), and state your intention to file suit if the debt is not paid. Many tenants pay when they realize they have been found.
File Suit and Serve
If the demand letter goes unanswered, file suit in the appropriate court. For amounts under the small claims limit (varies by state — $5,000 to $12,500 in most states), small claims court is fast and does not require an attorney. For larger amounts, file in civil court. Serve the tenant at the address provided by the skip trace.
Enforce the Judgment
After winning the judgment, use the skip trace employer information to initiate wage garnishment. Record a judgment lien on any real property the tenant owns. Levy bank accounts if known. The judgment is enforceable for 10+ years in most states and accrues interest.
🔍 Find Your Former Tenants — Results in 24 Hours or Less
Our skip tracing services specialize in locating former tenants for property managers and landlords nationwide. Current addresses, phone numbers, employer information, and more — everything you need to recover what you are owed. Over 20 years of experience. Batch skip tracing available for property management companies with multiple accounts.
Order Tenant Skip Trace →📬 Serving Former Tenants Who Moved Out of State
When a skip trace reveals that the former tenant moved to another state, you have several options for pursuing your claim: 📬
📌 File in your state where the lease was signed. Most leases contain a forum selection clause specifying that disputes will be resolved in the county where the property is located. Even without such a clause, the tenant’s breach occurred at the property location, giving your local courts jurisdiction. You can then serve the tenant in their new state for the local lawsuit.
📌 File in the tenant’s new state. If your lease does not have a forum selection clause and the amount is small, filing in the tenant’s new state may be easier for enforcement purposes — a judgment from the tenant’s current state can be enforced immediately without domestication.
📌 Use a collection agency. For smaller balances, turning the account over to a collection agency with the skip trace information may be the most efficient option. Collection agencies can pursue the debt directly without requiring you to file suit.
💰 Collecting Money Judgments from Former Tenants
Once you have a judgment against a former tenant, collection tools include: 💰
📌 Wage garnishment. The most reliable collection method. Once you have the tenant’s employer from the skip trace, file a wage garnishment order. Up to 25% of the tenant’s disposable earnings are sent directly to you each pay period until the judgment is satisfied.
📌 Bank levy. If you identify the tenant’s bank, a bank levy freezes and seizes funds in the account up to the judgment amount.
📌 Judgment lien. If the former tenant owns real property, recording a judgment lien ensures the debt is paid when the property is sold or refinanced. This is a long-term collection strategy — the lien stays in place for years and accrues interest.
📌 Debtor examination. If you do not know the tenant’s financial details, request a debtor examination — a court proceeding where the tenant must appear under oath and answer questions about their income, bank accounts, and assets. See our debtor examination preparation guide.
📊 Batch Skip Tracing for Property Management Portfolios
Property management companies that oversee large portfolios generate multiple skip tracing needs every month. Batch skip tracing allows you to submit multiple former tenants at once for processing: 📊
📌 Volume efficiency. Submit 10, 50, or 100 former tenants in a single batch. Results are returned for all subjects, typically with volume pricing discounts that reduce your per-search cost significantly.
📌 Systematic recovery. Rather than pursuing former tenants one at a time as they come to mind, batch processing creates a systematic recovery program — every tenant who leaves owing money gets traced and pursued. This systematic approach dramatically increases total recovery compared to ad hoc efforts.
📌 Integration with collection workflow. Batch skip trace results integrate directly into your collection workflow — demand letters, lawsuit filings, judgment enforcement — creating an efficient pipeline from skip trace to recovery.
⚖️ Legal Compliance for Property Managers
Property managers using skip tracing must comply with applicable federal and state laws: ⚖️
📌 FDCPA considerations. If you use a third-party collector or attorney to pursue former tenants, the FDCPA applies to their communications. Some state mini-FDCPAs also apply to landlords collecting their own debts.
📌 FCRA for tenant screening. Tenant screening reports used for rental decisions must comply with the FCRA, including adverse action notice requirements when you deny a rental application based on screening results.
📌 Security deposit laws. Every state has specific rules for security deposit handling — itemized accountings, mailing deadlines, and return requirements. Skip tracing ensures you have the correct mailing address to comply with these statutory requirements.
📌 Privacy laws. Skip tracing for legitimate debt recovery and lawsuit service is legal and compliant with state privacy laws. Professional providers ensure all searches comply with the GLBA, DPPA, and other applicable regulations.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
📚 Related Resources
📋 Disclaimer
This guide is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Landlord-tenant laws, debt collection rules, and recovery procedures vary by state. Consult with a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for specific guidance. People Locator Skip Tracing provides professional skip tracing services for property managers — we do not provide legal advice or legal representation. Information current as of 2025.
