house renting

Hi all,
It may not be appropriate to post this here but I know there are nice and resourceful people around :)
I'm currently in China and would like to rent my house in US to someone.
I do have an agent who is supposed to manage everything but he is not doing a good job. Now I found a renter myself but not sure how to proceed with contract etc. How do I do a background check on this renter? How to perpar a contract and sign it without personal presence? Or maybe it's best to go through the agent? Anyone has experience on this? Please advise!
Thanks a lot!