ETA: I have decided to stop running these background checks myself, and ask applicants to pay for them. If they can’t pay, and won’t let me take it out of their deposit, I won’t rent to them. I will be asking for current legal names, regardless of whether someone has socially transitioned names, to cover my ass in case I have to evict them. I won’t ask for prior legal names. There are some compromises to my values, but I don’t want to get sued or be homeless, so there we have it. I am extremely grateful for everyone’s input, this post grounded me in a scary situation. I won’t be responding to comments as readily as before bc I need some space, but I will still read them.

I am the primary tenant in a house with four others, as a result I am the de facto landlord. It’s been a bit of a revolving door of subtenants since COVID, most of the residents we’ve had over the last couple of years are queer and several have been/are trans. I am trans non-binary, but I was given a gender-neutral name with which I am comfortable. As a result, I don’t have my own journey with a name change.

I am about to file my second eviction against a subtenant in six months. I hate it and it makes me feel gross, but the reliable housemates and I are well over $2k in the hole due to these people skipping out on bills. Our peace of mind is also quite shot, as we were/are harassed and intimidated in our home by these individuals. Both of these people are trans and have either legally or socially changed their names.

I have been trying to conduct tighter background checks to vet people before coming in. We can’t afford a formal service, so I conduct them myself (I have training in this). After locating a legal name change for one of these subtenants (long after they moved in), I uncovered a history of violence and eviction that would absolutely have prevented me from renting to them. Between that person and our latest evictee, my safety has been compromised and my rental history/financial security is at risk of falling apart.

I know that former names/deadnames are sensitive information. Not every trans person who comes in is a risk, my closest friend in the house is a trans woman and I trust her deeply. However, I feel like I will have to ask people for the other names they have gone by in order to protect myself from yet another rent scammer. I have no desire to use these names to discriminate against them, it would be a universal policy, also for people who have been married, etc. I just need more reliable background info.

So, how can I tactfully approach this? Is it even fair for me to ask for a legal name history, or should I continue to assume these risks? Originally my policy was to keep the deadname confidential and only share it with the landlords. However, now that I am pursuing legal action, and my housemates who are owed utilities may do the same, I feel like I have to share this info where appropriate for legal purposes. Otherwise these people are literally stealing from us. What’s more is that we can’t cite the legal issues I am finding to others we try to warn, as the court documents are in their former name/deadname. If I out their behavior, I out their deadname, too. But surely the answer can’t be for honest queers to go broke and get abused instead??

I don’t want to be an asshole, and being misnamed as a trans person is a trauma that cis people don’t experience the same way. But I am going fuckin bankrupt and have to sublease to yet another stranger in the next month. What do I do?