Standardized Rental Criteria

Rentzap LLC is a third-party service utilized by housing providers to underwrite applicants. This is the criteria Rentzap uses to underwrite.

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1. LEASE START DATE

1. Lease needs to start within one of the following time frames determined by the housing provider.

Lease start ranges
14 days or less from application acceptance
21 days or less from application acceptance
30 days or less from application acceptance
60 days or less from application acceptance

2. IDENTIFICATION

1. Applicants must be able to prove legal presence in the United States and provide at least one current, valid government-issued photo ID.

Acceptable forms of Identification
Valid & undamaged U.S. passport book or passport card
In-state, fully-valid driver's license or enhanced driver's license with photo
Certificate of Naturalization
Certificate of Citizenship
Government employee ID (city, county, state, or federal)
U.S. military or military-dependent ID
Current (valid) foreign passport
U.S. Permanent Resident Card (Green Card) - commonly used by a parent of a U.S. citizen child applicant
Trusted Traveler IDs (including valid Global Entry, FAST, SENTRI, and NEXUS cards)
Enhanced Tribal Cards and Native American tribal photo IDs
In-state, fully-valid learner's permit with photo
In-state, fully-valid non-driver ID with photo
Temporary driver's license with photo
State-issued Digital ID

3. INCOME

1. Average Effective Gross Monthly Income (“AEGMI”) for the household must be at least three (3) times the amount of the monthly rent.

   1. In municipalities that require landlord participation in voucher programs, household must provide at least three (3) times gross income for the household's portion of the rent. Additionally, voucher recipients are encouraged to review and understand all qualifying criteria, including deposit payment schedules and move-in date requirements before applying.

2. Documentation for W-2 Income must be provided by the applicant in at least one of the following ways:

W-2 Income Documentation Requirements
1 most recent month’s worth of paystubs that show the applicant's name, employer, date range, gross income amount, net income amount, and all taxes and other deductions. Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit paystubs in PDF format as received from their employer. Photos/screenshots are not accepted.
2 most recent months of bank statements that show the applicant's name, date range of statements, and regularly occurring identifiable deposits from the employer. Bank statements must be submitted in their entirety with every page included. Applicants are strongly encouraged to download statements directly from their bank. Photos/screenshots are not accepted.
Executed Job Offer letter signed by both applicant and applicant's employer that states applicant's name, position, employer’s name and contact information, start date, how much applicant is paid, and how the applicant is compensated. Only applicable if the applicant has started a new job within the last 30 days.

1. W-2 Employment must be at "Arm's Length" to the employer or income will be underwritten following self-employment policies

2. Additional Requirements for Executed Job Offer Letter as proof of W-2 Income

   1. Applicant must also show proof of 3x the monthly rent in available liquid assets

   2. Job offer cannot be from temporary employment or staffing agency

3. If an applicant owns 25% or more of a business, the applicant is considered self-employed. Self-employed applicants will be evaluated on personal income only. Business income/revenue will not be considered as personal income. Documentation for Self-Employed Income must be provided by the applicant in the following way:

Self-Employment Documentation Requriements
3 most recent months of business bank statements that show the applicant's business name, date range of statements, and regular payments to themself. Bank statements must be submitted in their entirety with every page included. Applicants are strongly encouraged to download statements directly from their bank. Photos/screenshots are not accepted.
3 most recent months of personal bank statements that show the applicant's name, date range of statements, and regular payments to themself. Bank statements must be submitted in their entirety with every page included. Applicants are strongly encouraged to download statements directly from their bank. Photos/screenshots are not accepted.
Last Year's Personal Tax Return. All tax returns must be submitted in their entirety with all pages included.

1. Documentation for Liquid Assets like stocks, bonds & savings must be provided by the applicant in the following way:

Liquid Asset Documentation Requirements
2 months of bank statements that show the applicant's name, date range of statements, all itemized transactions, and amount of funds available. Bank statements must be submitted in their entirety with every page included. Applicants are strongly encouraged to download statements directly from their bank. Photos/screenshots are not accepted.

1. Documentation for other income like social security, pension, trust fund income, educational grants, etc, must be provided by the applicant in the following way:

Other Income Documentation Requirements
3 months of bank statements that show the applicant's name, date range of statements, all itemized transactions, and amount of funds available. Bank statements must be submitted in their entirety with every page included. Applicants are strongly encouraged to download statements directly from their bank. Photos/screenshots are not accepted.
Documents must show that the funds have been available to the applicant for at least 60 days.

4. CREDIT

1. A soft credit inquiry will be processed for each applicant.

2. Credit scores for all applicants will be determined using the VantageScore 4.0 scoring model.

3. At least one member of every household must have a valid credit score and credit history.

4. If no members of a household have a valid credit score and credit history, the application will be denied.

5. The average credit score for the household must equal or exceed a score determined by the housing provider:

Average Household Credit Score Ranges Determined by Housing Provider
550 or higher
600 or higher
650 or higher

1. Open Collections, Charge Offs, and Judgments to housing providers must be satisfied.

2. Chapter 7 Bankruptcy must be discharged over 90 days from the date of application submission.

3. Chapter 13 Bankruptcy must have an “order date” from the court that is at least one (1) year from application submission.

4. Applicants with adverse actions from a "payday loan" or similar establishment within a five-year period of application submission will be denied.

5. CRIMINAL HISTORY

1. Applicants that are registered sex offenders will be denied.

2. Applicants must have no felony convictions less than 5 years old that involve violent crimes against persons or property, including but not limited to murder, arson, kidnapping, assault, bomb-related offenses, robbery or burglary, terrorism OR that involve the manufacturing or distribution of drugs in any manner

3. All other felony convictions must be more than 3 years old

4. Conviction of any drug-related offenses involving possession only, or alcohol-related offenses where no one was permanently injured or killed, must be at least 2 years old

5. Successful completion of any felony sentence at least 2 years ago and no new criminal activity for at least 2 years before this application is required

6. In the event a record comes back "adjudication withheld", "nolle prosse", or "adjudication deferred", further documentation may be required and the applicant may be denied on this basis.

7. No Applicant with any outstanding warrants or crime that is awaiting trial will be accepted

8. If the Applicant would like Rentzap to review additional information regarding the felony conviction or the current arrest or warrant as part of their rental application, the Applicant is permitted to submit that information along with their application and it will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Please submit by emailing [e-mail]

9. Applicants are encouraged to attach additional documentation or information to the application if they believe that documentation or information is relevant and necessary for the processing and evaluation of the application. Please submit by emailing [e-mail]

6. RENTAL HISTORY

1. Rental history and/or previous home ownership will be verified for each applicant.

2. An application is not considered complete until all the addresses that were occupied by the applicant in the last 2 years are documented

3. No more than (2) late Rent payments in a 12-month period

4. No more than one (1) NSF Rent Payment in a 12-month period

5. No non-compliance issues that resulted in non-renewal or eviction

6. No applicants with prior or pending eviction within a 3-year period of application will be accepted

7. No applicants with outstanding monies owed to an apartment community or landlord will be accepted.

7. ANIMALS

1. Animals must meet criteria determined by the housing provider in the following categories

Category	Restrictions
Weight	25lbs or less 50lbs or less No weight restrictions
Type	No Cats No Dogs No animal type restrictions
Breed	No varieties or mixes of rottweilers, pit bulls or dobermans No breed restrictions
Age	1 year or older No age restrictions
Quantity	1 2 3 4 No quantity restrictions

1. Criteria for animals do not apply to qualified assistive animals.

8. QUALIFIED ASSISTIVE ANIMALS

1. Assistive animals require documentation as outlined by The A.D.A and HUD Guidelines FHEO-2020-01: https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/PA/documents/HUDAsstAnimalNC1-28-2020.pdf

2. An individual seeking a reasonable accommodation for an assistive animal should provide documentation from a caregiver addressing that the animal provides support and alleviates one or more of the identified symptoms or effects of an existing disability.

   1. If you do not have a Reasonable Accommodation form, you can download and use this one: Download Form

3. Such documentation will be deemed sufficient if it establishes that an individual has a disability and that the animal in question will provide some type of disability-related assistance or emotional support.

4. Rentzap is a web-based screening tool and an individual’s disability or disability-related need for an assistance animal is not readily apparent or known to us.

   1. In cases where Rentzap becomes aware that a disability is readily apparent or known but the disability-related need for the assistance animal is not, we still require documentation of the disability-related need for an assistance animal.

For more information about assistance animals, visit: HUD's website

9. OCCUPANCY

1. Households with more than two persons per bedroom plus one additional person will be denied

2. Per city ordinance, households with three or more unrelated persons applying for homes in the City of Tempe will be denied.

10. GUARANTORS

1. Housing providers determine if guarantors are or are not allowed to be members of the household.

2. To qualify as a guarantor, the guarantor must have a 650 or greater credit score and monthly income that is 4.5x rent. Some listings require a guarantor credit score of at least 670.

3. If guarantor is married, spouse is required to apply and sign lease as a guarantor.

4. To be eligible for a guarantor, the household must have a minimum average credit score of 500.

11. SPOUSES

1. States that are community property states require that married persons and their spouses all sign leases in excess of 1 year.

12. FALSIFYING INFORMATION

1. Any fraudulent, false or misleading information will result in a decline.

13. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

1. Applicant understands that deposits and fees listed on any advertising may be required to be paid in full in as little as 24 hours from acceptance and no later than prior to move-in.