Tenant Qualification Standards

• Maximum Occupancy: two (2) persons per bedroom plus one additional person, subject to local laws and requirements.
• Gross Income: Applicant(s) must have verifiable combined household monthly gross income of at least three (3) times the monthly rent advertised for the property.  Section 8 and other housing vouchers and certificates are currently not accepted.
• Credit History: Applicant’s credit status will be checked through a national credit bureau.  Tenancy may be denied due to poor credit history. Credit scores, judgments, collections, late payments, limited credit history, absence of credit, foreclosures, and debt to income ratio are all used in determining qualification for renting a property. Minimum standards for approval without conditions (see Conditional Qualifications below) include:
  • Credit score of at least 650*
  • No open bankruptcies
  • No bankruptcies, judgments, collections, or write-offs
  • No unpaid utilities or car payments on credit report or in court records

*If your credit score is between 600 – 650, we may, at our sole discretion,allow a Conditional Qualification and require (1) that you obtain a Guarantor / co-signer that has a minimum credit score of 700 and monthly income of at least 5x the monthly rent. Credit scores below 600 will be declined. See Conditional Qualifications and Guarantors policies below.

• Criminal Background Check: A thorough criminal background check will be conducted on all applicants. Residency may be denied based on criminal history. Generally, applicants with a history of drug-related offenses and/or crimes against people or property will be denied.
• Rental History:
  • Applicant must provide consecutive rental history (with no gaps) for the last five (5) years. If the applicant owned, rather than rented, their previous home, the applicant may be required to furnish mortgage company references and proof of title ownership or transfer.
  • Rental history must be verifiable from independent, unrelated (non-familial) sources. Applicant must receive positive references from all previous landlords. Four Walls reserves the right to deny an application if, after making a good faith effort, we are unable to verify the applicant’s rental history. 
  • Applicant may not have any evictions, foreclosures, civil judgments, or outstanding debt from current or previous landlords. Satisfied or dismissed evictions may be considered with proper documentation.
    • The following rental or mortgage history verification will result in an automatic denial:
    • More than 2 late payments or 1 5-Day Notices to Pay or Quit per each 12-month period.
    • More than 1 NSF payment per each 12-month period.
    • Outstanding balances owed on previous rentals.
    • More than 1 disturbance, complaint, or lease rule violation during each 12-month period.
    • Any default in lease or mortgage agreements
• Employment History:  Applicant must show solid work history without job-hopping, employment gaps, or unsteady income.

Conditional Qualification:  In the event applicant fails to meet any of the Tenant Qualification Standards, Four Walls may, at our sole discretion, conditionally qualify and approve an application subject to certain additional requirements.  These additional requirements may include, but not be limited to, payment of an additional security deposit, and/or the addition of a Guarantor.

Guarantors:  Guarantors may be considered for applicants with deficiencies in credit, income, and/or rental history only.  Only one Guarantor per property is allowed. The Guarantor must submit an application, undergo the screening process, pay the application fee, and provide all necessary supporting documents.  Guarantors must have a credit score of at least 700 and must provide proof of income of at least five (5) times the monthly rent of the property.  If approved, they must sign the lease agreement as if they are moving into the rental property.  They will be held responsible for the lease and any other costs incurred on the lease, such as damages should the tenant(s) default.

Multiple Applicants: When multiple applicants apply together as a household (an “application group”), all individual applications will be evaluated both separately and collectively. Screening criteria—including credit history, rental history, criminal background, income verification, and civil court records—will be considered for each member of the group.  If any individual applicant fails to meet the eligibility criteria due to factors such as criminal history, poor credit, unsatisfactory rental history, falsified documents, or adverse civil judgments, the entire application group may be denied.