Fair Housing Starts Here: Screen all applicants — don’t discriminate and only screen some applicants and not others. Fair housing practices start with the application process. To avoid the appearance of discrimination, use the same credit searches on all applicants. Consult with a knowledgeable fair housing attorney prior to incorporating criminal background checks into your screening process.

Fair Credit Reporting Act: Under this act, you are prohibited from obtaining a credit report under false pretenses; you are required to use credit reports for legitimate business purposes only; and you are prohibited from disclosing any information contained in the report(s) received. Please see the Service Agreement for more details.

Receipt for Resident Screening and/or Credit Checking Fees: Available from CAA – Form 3.5 (Receipt for Tenant Screening/Credit Checking Fees) or as a tear-off receipt on the Application to Rent (Form 3.0-R)

Rental housing owners and managers have the legal authority to collect a screening fee from all prospective residents. The law stipulates that:

• Owners are allowed to charge prospective residents a screening fee to cover the costs of obtaining and evaluating information to make an educated rental decision. The initial law provided that in no case can the amount of the application fee charged by the owner be greater than $30 per applicant. This fee may be adjusted annually by the owner commensurate with an increase in the Consumer Price Index. Visit www.caanet.org/kb/max-screening-fee for the current maximum amount you can
  charge for a screening fee.
• Unless the applicant agrees, the law prohibits owners from charging a fee when they know that no rental unit is available and requires owners to return the fee if they do not perform a background check.
• The owner must provide the applicant with an itemized receipt for the money paid.
• Upon request, the owner must provide the prospective resident with a copy of any credit report obtained.