There is a common saying that if you "do the crime, then you do the time".  But what happens when even though "time" was for 10 years, the punishment ends up being for life?  That is the prospect for felons in America, as their ability to operate a normal life after their sentence is extremely difficult, as nobody wants to take the risk with someone with a record.

This issue has society wide implications, as we ask ourselves whether it is healthy for a society to not allow people to have a second chance.  If someone isn't allowed to start fresh with a new job and a place to live, they are much more likely to fall back into an illegal lifestyle as they have no other choices.

For us in multifamily, we may appreciate the broad societal implications, but do we really want to take on the risk of bringing ex-felons, even if they are non-violent, into our communities? 

Rather than taking this issue from a societal point of view, and whether it is somehow our "duty" to house felons, I wonder if there is an approach that sees this as an opportunity rather than a burden.  The reality is that while many people with felony records are hardened criminals who will continue to do illegal activities, there are many that regret the mistakes of their youth, and simply want to have a normal life like the rest of us. 

So I want to get the opinion of the Insider community.  Thumbs up or thumbs down, is there an opportunity for properties to go deeper into the screening process, and rather than instituting a blanket denial for ex-felons, use more advanced screening techniques to identify what type of person, and renter, that person ultimately is?

UPDATE:  I found an interesting story told by a felon.  It shows how difficult life can be once they have been convicted, even years later when they want to turn their life around.