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Your chosen apartment

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Your first step will be to fill out a rental application. The landlord may charge an application fee and will review the information you supply.

Information needed to fill out the rental application

  • Identification with a picture.

  • Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and full legal names of yourself and any adult(s) over 18 who will live with you.

  • Place of employment for each adult, correct company name and address, the full names of immediate supervisors, and gross yearly or monthly income.

  • Amounts of money in: Bank account(s), bank loans, and credit card debt for any adult named on the lease. The landlord uses these to check your credit rating and evaluate whether you can pay the rent.

  • Driver’s license and motor vehicle registration if you have a car.

  • Rental history, the addresses and phone numbers of the people you lived with for the last two to four places you lived. This can assist you in showing the landlord that you are a responsible individual.

To increase your chances of getting the apartment you want, have the information organized and ready. Be honest with all the information you give. Landlords have the right to obtain a credit report and do a criminal records check.

If you lie on the application or give false information on purpose, you are committing fraud. Criminal charges may be brought against you for giving false answers or information. If the landlord rejects your application, the landlord will need to explain why. If the reason stated does not seem appropriate, contact NPLS, your local legal aid office, or the local lawyer referral service to discuss what you might do.
 

Negotiating with the landlord

If the landlord approves of your renting the apartment or house, you may be asked to sign a lease. Look at the Lease Checklist, p. 42, ensure that you ask the landlord all of your questions about the lease.

You may be able to negotiate with the landlord to improve conditions in the apartment or provide more services. It may be harder to do this with apartment complex managers because of company policy, but ask! At some point, you may have to settle for what is offered, or you can decide to look elsewhere.

The time to make deals with the landlord is after you have been accepted as a tenant, but before you sign the lease. The landlord will usually ask for a security deposit (up to two months’ rent) and require you to sign a lease stating the agreement that you are willing to accept.

You can cancel the lease within 72 hours of signing the lease, which allows you to get your security deposit back. However, if you are unsure, you may want to take time to look at other apartments or review the lease in more detail. Contact NPLS, your local legal aid office, or the local lawyer referral service to review the contract, answer your questions and address your concerns.

Remember that once you sign the lease you are in a contract for a certain period of time as stated in the lease. The only way you can make changes is if you and your landlord both agree to change the contract in writing. If you do not meet the requirements that are expected of you, the landlord will be allowed to find other tenants and require you to move out.