As an interested applicant, you will always want to make sure that you complete the application process promptly. Whether it’s your first time submitting a rental application or not, it’s important to know that completing the rental application is vital to get approved.
Applications are processed on a FIRST-COME-PRE-QUALIFIED, FIRST-SERVE BASIS; and, without regard to race, color, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, veteran status, genetic information, union status, and/or beliefs, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.
What does a pre-qualified applicant look like? An application is considered pre-qualified if the below has been successfully satisfied/completed:
- All Occupants/Tenants above 18 years of age have submitted an application.
- The application fee has been paid for each occupant/tenant above 18 years of age.
- Completed All Necessary documents listed on the rental application form.
- Valid Social Security number or Tax ID number
- Verifiable income showing collective net income of at least three times the monthly rent.
- Have at least 12 months of verifiable rental or mortgage history on present or previous residences, showing a positive rental history without evictions, failure to pay rent records, improper notice to vacate records, or lease complaints/violations.
- Be able to take possession of the property within two weeks from the availability date
- For Benefit holders:
- Verifiable income showing collective net income of at least three times the tenant's rent portion.
- Benefits verification letter
Table of Contents on the Rental Application Process
Written below are the steps on what the rental application process looks like. Typically, this will take one to three (1-3) business days. However, there are times when one application might take longer than usual due to uncontrollable circumstances.
- Applicant Information
- Payment of Application Fee
- Credit and Background Check
- Employment and Income Verification
- Rental History Verification
- Animal Screening Verification
- Rental Owner Approval
- Lease Draft and Signing
Applicant Information
Applicants are asked to enter their:
- Name
- SSN
- Birthdate
- E-Mail,
- Phone
- Current address
- and a few other questions that’ll be relevant to the application.
Please be aware that any false information provided on your application will be grounds for denial.
Payment of Application Fee
The application fee will be charged to the account once it’s your turn. The fee is used to cover the administrative, hard, and soft costs of processing individual rental applications. They cannot be ordered/processed collectively or combined.
Credit and Background Check
In evaluating the application, the consumer reporting agency (TransUnion LLC) provides information that in whole or in part influences the approval or denial decision. TransUnion LLC and Vantage Data Solutions provide us with credit and criminal record information. For applicants who have questions about their report(s), they have the right to dispute the matter with the reporting agency, not through 5 Star Property Management, that has provided the report. The reporting agency can be reached through RentPort consumer relations at 1- 800-230-9376 or [email protected].
Employment and Income Verification
This is one of the essential parts of the screening process. These data ensure that one can afford the rental property desired by an applicant. While 5 Star Property Management relies on various forms of information to determine if a tenant can afford to rent the property, it’s recommended that these be filled out with all honesty with sources showing the current total net income.
Animal Screening Verification
Each animal(s) that will live on the property is required to undergo a screening process with our affiliated company - PetScreening.com
What is PetScreening?
“PetScreening is a simple and secure way to manage important information about your Pet or Assistance Animal. If you have No Pet or Animal you are not required to complete the screening process.
The per-pet application fee is as low as $20 for the first pet and $15 for every additional pet. Each pet profile must be processed separately but the multi-pet discount will be automatically applied to any additional pet profiles processed.
There is no charge ($0) for submitting a reasonable accommodation request for an assistance animal. It will be reviewed by our legal review team per the FHAct guidelines. Please be aware of your state's statutes or local ordinances, if any, for criminal offenses and/or penalties for committing assistance animal fraud.”
Source: Petscreening.com
Rental History Verification
The rental verification assists 5 Star Property Management to verify the rental history of an applicant. In this process, the applicants are asked to sign the Authorization to Release Information to allow us to call/email/text their listed landlord and ask for information in reference to their rental history. This allows us to get more accurate data on how rent payments were delivered, if there were any problems during the lease, or if there had been any complaints. Please know that our decision is based on the information only and not on hearsay, thus we make sure that we do this objectively.
Rental Owner Approval
Once all the above information has been gathered, 5 Star Property Management objectively summarizes them and presents them to the rental owners for final approval. Once the decision has been made, it’ll be relayed to the applicant(s).
Lease Drafting and Signing
Upon getting approval, two things take place immediately:
Finalizing Move-in Date
Move-in date is tentatively scheduled as submitted on the rental application. The applicant is asked if there are any changes to it and are reminded how the keys will be handed off.
Lease Packet Drafting and Signing
The lease packet will be drafted within 1-2 business days and sent to the applicant electronically for