Applicant Screening

Screening Criteria

By:  The Oregonian Editorial Board

Printed 9-16-18

1. ADVERTISING. Advertising is one of the most common ways landlords find people to place in rental properties. When advertising, landlord clients should describe property attributes and/or amenities, not what they are or are not looking for in a resident. Landlords should not say "great for a young couple" as it may be considered discriminatory to families with children.

According to HUD, criminal background checks have a disproportionate impact on minority home seekers, largely due to disproportionate conviction and incarceration rates for minorities and others in protected classes.

The most effective solution is getting good tenants in the first place. Screen each and every potential tenant for credit history, criminal convictions, and evictions. Set your application standards and stick to them (i.e., don't fall for any "hard luck" stories). There are certain restrictions on what may be considered in the evaluation process, so consult an attorney on the specifics.

Answer: You should discuss this with the applicant. Reasonable cause for rejection includes the failure of their references to respond to your request for verification within the time allowed for acceptance or rejection.

Answer.   I’ll try.  First let’s start with some definitions:

Section 603 of the FCRA defines a “consumer report” as:

Answer:  In a word “Yes”. Today, the rule of thumb should be that subject to certain exceptions (listed below), you should not summarily reject applicants solely because of prior convictions.  I have written and spoken on this issue during 2016. 

Answer: First, please understand that Oregon law does not directly deal with this - and neither is it addressed in most rental/lease agreements, including MHCO's. So my responses are based upon my opinion alone. Until an appellate court rules on these issues - which is unlikely, since most such cases are never appealed - the best we can do is speculate.

Answer. Your confusion is understandable, because there are no black and white guidelines.  However, attached to this short article is a copy of a publication recently posted on the National Association of Realtors® website.