Rejecting Tenant's Application
You've done the background check on your new tenant and you see
it's a no-go. As long as the reason isn't discriminatory
(rejecting a tenant due to their race, religion, national
origin, ancestry, age, sexual preference, sex or disability)
you'll be okay, right? Not necessarily.
Patty Lang, an Associate Broker/Property Manager for Ambrose &
Shoemaker Rental & Property Management Services in Corning, NY
gives Landlord's a few pointers. "In order to stay out of
trouble with Fair Housing, it is important to set standards for
evaluating applications. The standards must be legal and they
must be applied to all applications. One of the biggest things
we are judged on is that our standards are uniformly applied and
that the unit is rented to the 'First Qualified Applicant.' The
important thing is that people must keep good records of how
they apply the rules to all potential tenants equally."
If you simply tell a tenant "Your application has been
rejected." with nothing to back up the reasons for your
decision, the tenant could then draw a number of conclusions:
# It's because of my race. # It's because of my sexual
preference. # It's because I have kids. Etc.
This might not be what you intended at all... but unless you
have proof to back you up otherwise, your rejected applicant may
be able to make it seem that way. To avoid any sticky situations
with false accusations, Ms. Lang advises you accompany each
application with a cover letter explaining to the tenant how you
will evaluate their application. The following is the letter she
created for her tenants:
Welcome to Ambrose & Shoemaker Rental & Property Management
Services
We hope that you will find a property that meets all your
needs. For your convenience, the following is a brief overview
of the general guidelines used to process an application.
# A completed application form - in order to tell us about
yourself. Each adult wishing to live in one of our properties
must fill out an application and be approved. All sections of
each application must be complete and accurate. # Employment -
in order to verify that there is adequate income to make rental
payments. In general, we expect applicant to have been in
current employment for at least six (6) months, and that income
is equal to three to four times the monthly rental amount. #
Rental History - in order to verify that the prospective tenant
has demonstrated a desire to meet lease obligations. In general,
we want to verify the amount of current rent and that the rent
was paid in a timely manner; that the property was kept in good
condition; that there is no history of complaints from other
tenants; that all lease obligations have been met; and, that the
tenancy has been a positive experience. # Credit History - in
order to verify that the prospective tenant has demonstrated
fiscal responsibility. In general we look for payments that are
made on time, that there are no judgments or bankruptcy records,
and that credit responsibilities are in line with income. #
Vehicle information - including make, model, color & year of any
vehicle to be kept at the rental property. # A valid photo I.D.-
so that we can assure the property owner that the person
applying for the property is indeed the person moving in. #
Authorization for us to verify information given on the
application and to order a credit check.
No person shall be denied the right to rent one of our
properties based on applicant's race, color, religion, national
origin, sex, age, disability, marital status or familial status.
By providing tenants with the above information before they even
fill out the application, they will know exactly what you're
looking for, and what possible reasons their application may
have been rejected. In the event that you do choose to reject an
application, you should be prepared to provide the applicant
with a written documentation about the reasons why. For a sample
of a rejection letter along with more details about rejecting
applicants, visit Landlord.com.