Tenant screening — what to verify, and what you legally can't ask.

If you remember one thing from this entire site, make it this: the tenant you pick is the single biggest lever on the profitability of the unit. Screening is how you pick well, and it's the part most first-time landlords skip because it feels uncomfortable or slow. A repeatable workflow, applied to every applicant identically, is what turns screening from a judgment call into a process that holds up in court and keeps you on the right side of fair housing.

Section oneThe seven federal protected classes

Federal fair-housing law prohibits denying an applicant based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, or disability. Most states add more: source of income, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, or veteran status. You cannot ask about any of them. You cannot accidentally pattern-match on them. The safest rule is to evaluate every applicant on the same published criteria, in the same order, with the same documentation — and to write down why you chose whoever you chose.

Section twoIncome and employment verification

The working standard is that rent should not exceed roughly one-third of gross monthly income, though many landlords tighten this to 28% in high-rent markets and loosen it to 40% where vouchers are involved. Verify with two recent pay stubs, the last two months of bank statements, or an offer letter if the applicant just moved. For self-employed applicants, accept the last two years of tax returns and recent bank statements. Never rely on a single number on an application form.

A written workflow is what turns screening from a judgment call into a process that survives a legal challenge.

Section threeCredit, rental history, and background

A soft credit pull is enough for most landlords — FICO in the high 600s clears the bar in most markets, though markets with heavy voucher usage see credit correlate less with payment. Past rental history is more predictive than credit: call the previous two landlords, not just the current one (the current landlord has incentive to give a glowing review to move the tenant out). A background check is standard; be careful how you weight old or unrelated criminal history, because HUD guidance limits blanket bans.

Section fourThe written workflow

We recommend: a published set of criteria the applicant sees before they pay any fee; a standardized application; a screening service like RentPrep or TransUnion SmartMove; identical document requirements for every applicant; a decision made from a written checklist. Applicants who ask for exceptions are answered the same way every time. This sounds rigid, and it is — rigidity is the protection. You can explain a decision to a judge, a fair-housing investigator, and your own future self only if there's paperwork behind it.

Section fiveSaying no — and saying yes

When you decline, use a short, written adverse-action notice referencing the criteria the applicant didn't meet and the screening service that produced the report (required under the Fair Credit Reporting Act if a credit report was involved). When you approve, move fast: the good applicant has other options. A 24-hour decision window is standard in competitive markets; anything longer and you'll lose candidates to property managers who move quicker.