# Efficient and Effective Income Verification for Landlords, Lenders, and Government Agencies
As a landlord, lender, or government agency, verifying customers’ income is a crucial aspect of your work. However, verifying income can be tedious and time-consuming, especially when dealing with complex financial situations. Fortunately, new technologies and solutions can make income verification more efficient and effective. In this beginner’s guide, we’ll dive into some successful means for verifying customer income sources and amounts.
## The Challenges of Income Verification
Verifying customer income can be challenging for various reasons. Each customer or applicant has a unique financial situation. Some have easily verifiable income from a traditional employer, while others don’t have a simple source of cash flow. Freelancers, self-employed individuals, and those who receive income from relatives, government benefits, pension plans, or investments can present additional verification challenges.
Furthermore, verifying income can require lots of paperwork and double-checking everything for accuracy. The process can be time-consuming and frustrating for landlords, lenders, and government agencies, causing delays, and potentially missed opportunities.
## Income Verification Technology
Software programs can make just about anything more efficient, and income verification is no exception. Income verification technology can help lenders and creditors confirm a customer’s income within a few minutes, saving time and hassle for both parties.
By syncing with many employers’ payroll networks, these solutions make it more challenging for applicants to manipulate the numbers. Additionally, some income verification solutions can verify freelance income from popular independent contractor platforms like Upwork. This saves applicants time hunting down bank statements and pay stubs.
One excellent income verification technology is Truework, which helps lenders and landlords confirm a customer’s income. The solution connects to many employers’ payroll networks, making it a trustworthy and reliable source of income verification.
## Government-Run Verification Services
Mortgage lenders face additional complexity when verifying a customer’s income, as property ownership goes to the bank if a borrower defaults. Two years of tax returns, W-2s, and bank statements for savings, checking, and investment accounts, as well as other loan statements or documentation, may need to be examined. To streamline this process, mortgage lenders may want to consider using the IRS’s income verification express service.
The verification process usually takes two to three business days, and the technology helps confirm an applicant’s income from conventional and not-so-traditional sources. Additionally, the service can confirm whether a client’s tax returns are accurate, making it a reliable source of verification for mortgage lenders.
## Outsourcing Manual Income Verifications
While technology can automate and perform a lot of tasks, sometimes using technology isn’t possible, or it isn’t the most feasible solution. In some cases, an applicant may earn income from an employer that doesn’t use a payroll provider, or they might have switched jobs within the past year, with a previous employer no longer in business.
In these situations, manual income verification is the only route available. As a busy landlord or lending department, you don’t have time to hunt down contacts or play phone tag. However, by working with an income verification service, you can outsource those tasks.
Income verification solutions sometimes provide manual confirmation services, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your business. Your vendor handles the phone calls to HR departments and employers, confirming an applicant’s previous jobs and earnings. This speeds up results, helping you make decisions within days instead of weeks.
## Conclusion
Verifying customers’ income is an essential part of the job for property management companies, lenders, and government agencies. However, it can be a complex and time-consuming process, requiring lots of documentation and double-checking. Income verification technologies and services can help make the process more efficient and effective. By using software that syncs with payroll providers, IRS services, and outsourced manual verification services, landlords, lenders, and government agencies can remove obstacles and mitigate delays, creating better experiences for applicants and decision-makers.
