Could social networking effect tenancy applications?

I heard something the other day that really surprised me. Apparently, someone didn’t get accepted for a job application after the company researched the person via Facebook or MySpace. It’s understood that they didn’t like the images they saw & felt that they were unsuitable for the job.

The same could apply for any other aplications made. The main one relating to the real estate industry would be tenant applications. Currently agents can do credit checks & financial checks, but I wonder if this will become the new way to check out an applicant? I hope not.

Using these social network sites for processing tenancy applications would fuel a massive debate or backlash from Gen Y.