He does have a letter from current landlord that says he has a good payment history (about 12 months). (biggerpockets.com)
Ideally, you should avoid calling current landlords, as they might stretch the truth to rid themselves of a difficult renter. (moneysense.ca)
This approach is often considered by real estate investors who live close to their properties and have the bandwidth / moxie to handle things like maintenance, tenants screenings, paperwork and marketing the property, not to mention staying abreast of current landlord - tenant laws and regulations. (learn.roofstock.com)