What Safer Places does

Safer Places, Inc. is a privately held, family-owned background screening and consulting firm headquartered in Lakeville, Massachusetts, with additional offices in Worcester, MA and Sebago, ME. Founded and led by David C. Sawyer (CEO) alongside Brian Sawyer (President), the company operates with a 1-10 employee headcount and serves small and mid-sized businesses, landlords, property managers, non-profits, and apartment complexes across the United States. Its core offerings are FCRA-compliant pre-employment background checks, tenant screening, drug testing, social media screening, volunteer screening, photo IDs, and ancillary security consulting services. Differentiated tools include the HReasy Applicant Management Center, the CrimApollo EEOC assessment tool, the HRcomply state-by-state FCRA database, the Tenant Scorecard decision tool, and a continuous monitoring service that ingests 100,000 new criminal records daily covering approximately 90% of the US population. Social media screening is delivered through a 3-tier FCRA-certified analyst review with a disclosed $36 per-report price point, while other services are priced via custom quotes. The company's distribution is built on a sales-led and inside sales model, a client login portal, over 8,500 property management software integrations, and a TransUnion SmartMove co-distribution partnership for small independent landlords. Content-led demand generation runs through the SAFERupdates and HR3 podcasts, the HRintel Q&A service with employment law attorney Helene Horn Figman, monthly newsletters, and webinars, positioning Safer Places as a compliance-oriented educator as much as a screening vendor. The company is PBSA-accredited, FCRA and COPPA compliant, and operates without any disclosed external funding or parent company.

Name

Safer Places

Legal name

Safer Places, Inc.

Website

https://saferplacesinc.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Safer Places is a privately held, FCRA-compliant background screening and consulting firm in Lakeville, MA, serving employers, landlords, and non-profits across the US with employment, tenant, drug, and social media screening plus security consulting.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Background Screening Services

NAICS

Investigation and Personal Background Check Services (561611)

SIC

Services-Detective, Guard & Armored Car Services (7381)

akta.pro primary industry

Investigations & Background Screening Services (IMAIAEAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Tenant & Rental Background Screening (BPAKAEAB), Private Investigation & Security Consulting (Residential) (HSAHAKAL)

Keywords

• Employee background screening
• Tenant screening services
• Drug testing services
• Social media screening
• Security consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Middleboro

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Employment Background Screening: FCRA compliant background checks including criminal history searches, sex offender registries, drug testing, motor vehicle records, employment verifications, education verifications, credit reports, and social media screenings. Custom designed packages for specific employee types.
2. Tenant Screening Services: Tenant background checks including credit reports, eviction reports, criminal records, sex offender registries, employment verification, income verification, and previous landlord references.
3. Drug Testing Services: Drug-free workplace testing and DOT-regulated testing with nationwide lab network, electronic chain of custody forms, and Board-Certified Medical Review Officer (MRO) service.
4. Security Consulting: Independent expert security consulting including security system design, RFP & project management, policy & procedure development, guard contract management, and risk assessment.
5. Social Media Screening: FCRA compliant social media screening that identifies negative content including hate speech, bullying, narcotics, obscene language, political speech, self-harm, violence, drug images, explicit images, and violent images. Priced at $36 per report with volume discounts available.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Safer Places is a full-service background screening, drug testing, and security consulting firm that delivers FCRA-compliant pre-employment, tenant, and volunteer screening for U.S. businesses and landlords. The company pairs its proprietary HReasy applicant management platform with custom-designed screening packages, continuous employee monitoring, and a TransUnion SmartMove tenant screening channel.

Product overview

Safer Places is a full-service background screening, drug testing, and security consulting organization offering a comprehensive portfolio of products. The core offerings include Employment Screening, Drug Testing, Tenant Screening, Social Media Screening, Security Consulting, Photo IDs, and Volunteer Screening. These services are supported by the HReasy Applicant Management Center platform for order management, applicant data collection, and ATS/HRIS integration. Additional products include the Tenant Scorecard for decision-making, Continuous Monitoring for ongoing employee surveillance, CrimApollo for EEOC compliance guidance, HRintel for HR legal support, and HRcomply Database for FCRA compliance. The company also produces educational content through the SAFERupdates and HR3 podcasts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HReasy: Applicant Management Center dashboard that allows HR professionals to send applicants email or text to initiate background checks, electronically sign documents, and integrates with ATS or HRIS systems.
• eClipse
• CrimApollo
• HRcomply Database
• HRintel
• SAFERupdates Podcast
• HR3 Podcast
• Tenant Scorecard

Products and services

• Employment Screening FCRA-compliant pre-employment background checks including criminal history searches (county, statewide, federal), sex offender registries, drug testing, motor vehicle records, employment and education verification, credit reports, and social media screenings, delivered as custom packages for U.S. employers.
• Drug Testing Drug-free workplace and DOT-regulated drug testing with access to a nationwide lab network, electronic chain of custody forms, and Board-Certified Medical Review Officer (MRO) services for employers.
• Tenant Screening Background screening for landlords and property managers covering credit reports, eviction reports, criminal records, sex offender registries, employment verification, income verification, and previous landlord references.
• Social Media Screening FCRA-compliant review of publicly available social media content using proprietary software plus 3-tier FCRA-certified analyst review to identify hate speech, bullying, narcotics references, violence, explicit content, and other employment risk signals, delivered within 48-72 business hours.
• Security Consulting Independent security consulting engagements including security system design, RFP and project management, policy and procedure development, guard contract management, and risk assessment.
• Photo IDs Photo identification services for workplace safety and professional staff presentation.
• Volunteer Screening Background screening services tailored for non-profit organizations recruiting volunteers, including criminal history searches and related public record checks.
• HReasy Applicant Management Center Proprietary applicant management dashboard that lets HR professionals initiate background checks by emailing or texting applicants, capture electronic signatures and self-submitted data, and integrate with ATS or HRIS systems.
• Continuous Monitoring Post-hire monitoring service covering criminal records (100,000 new records daily, 90% U.S. population coverage), driving records, and social media content to flag ongoing employee risk.

Quantifiable outcome

• Criminal records monitored from 100,000 new records daily covering 90% of US population
• +2 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• TransUnioncoreTechnology or IntegrationTransUnion SmartMove partnership provides tenant screening designed specifically for small independent landlords. Accessible through Safer Places client login portal for seamless ordering and results delivery.
• Property Management Software ProviderscoreTechnology or IntegrationOver 8,500 integrations with property management software platforms completed. Dedicated team for developing additional integrations. Provides seamless experience to order background checks and get results within existing property management systems.
• Law Offices of Helene Horn FigmanminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmployment law attorney Helene Horn Figman partners with Safer Places through HRintel Q&A service and co-hosts the SAFERupdates and HR3 podcasts, providing employment law compliance expertise.
• AFLAC (Ken Platter)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerAFLAC representative Ken Platter co-hosts the HR3 podcast, discussing employee benefits and workplace topics alongside Safer Places.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Sterling: One of the largest US background screening providers, offering employment screening, tenant screening, drug testing, and continuous monitoring — almost the exact portfolio that Safer Places sells. Sterling operates at national scale with a far larger headcount and technology investment.
• First Advantage: Global background screening, identity, and verification services provider with deep enterprise and SMB coverage across employment screening, drug testing, and tenant screening. Comparable product portfolio but at vastly greater scale and with global delivery.
• Checkr: AI-first background screening platform serving employers, gig-economy platforms, and enterprises. Directly comparable product category (FCRA-compliant employment screening, continuous monitoring) but at vastly greater scale, with venture backing and modern API-first delivery that Safer Places cannot match.
• HireRight: Global background screening provider serving enterprise, mid-market, and SMB employers with employment screening, drug testing, and identity verification. Directly competes in the same FCRA-compliant screening category with significantly broader geographic and segment coverage.

Others

• TransUnion SmartMove: TransUnion's SMB tenant screening platform — both a partner of Safer Places (white-label distribution) and an adjacent competitor in the small-landlord screening segment. Highly relevant because the partnership sits in tension with direct competitive overlap in the same buyer profile.

Direct peers

• Accurate Background: Mid-sized US background screening provider serving employers and property managers with FCRA-compliant background checks, drug testing, and integrated screening workflows. Closely comparable in target customer, service mix, and mid-tier positioning to Safer Places.
• backgroundchecks.com: SMB-focused online background screening platform offering employment, tenant, and volunteer screening with transparent self-serve pricing. Closely comparable target customer (small employers, landlords) and product mix, though with a more self-service delivery model.

Emerging players

• Certn: Tech-forward background screening provider focused on faster turnaround and developer-friendly APIs for employers. Comparable FCRA-compliant screening offering, but positioning itself on speed and automation — directly pressuring the turnaround advantage of incumbents like Safer Places.
• RentPrep: Tenant screening service targeted at independent landlords and small property managers, with online ordering and FCRA-compliant tenant reports. Directly comparable in the landlord-tenant screening segment that Safer Places serves via its tenant screening product.
• Veremark: Globally distributed background screening platform with a modern, API-first delivery model targeting mid-market employers. Comparable FCRA-equivalent screening and verification offerings, positioning itself on technology quality in a way that pressures traditional screeners like Safer Places.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/saferplacesinc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCnjv0ok_L7tq6-EVMKSpu9w
• Facebookfacebook.com/saferplaces
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/1326058

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Safer Places