Tenant Screening Service Setup with TurboTenant

Do this before you open TurboTenant. Decide, on paper, the minimum credit score, income-to-rent ratio, and any other qualifying standards you'll apply to every applicant for this unit, and apply the same criteria to every applicant, every time. This single step is your strongest protection against a fair housing complaint, since a documented, consistently applied standard shows you rejected or approved someone based on the criteria, not on who they are.

1. Write down your minimum standards for this specific unit.
2. Decide now what counts as a qualifying income ratio, an acceptable credit range, and any deal breakers (an eviction within a certain number of years, for example).
3. Keep this written criteria somewhere you'll reference for every applicant on this unit, not just the first one.

What you should see: A short written document or note, specific enough that you could hand it to someone else and they'd apply it the same way you would. Troubleshooting: If your criteria are vague ("good credit," "stable income"), tighten them into numbers now. Vague criteria are the easiest to apply inconsistently without realizing it.

Go to turbotenant.com and sign up. TurboTenant's core software, listing, applications, and screening, is free for landlords, since the applicant typically pays the screening fee instead.

1. Sign up for a free account.
2. Add the property, entering the address, rent, and availability date.
3. Publish the listing if you want to advertise through TurboTenant, or skip straight to inviting a specific applicant if you already have one.

What you should see: A property listed in your dashboard with a status showing it's active and accepting applications. Troubleshooting: If you already have a prospective tenant and don't need the listing distributed publicly, you can still generate an application link to send directly to them.

Have the applicant fill out TurboTenant's online rental application before you request screening. It collects employment, income, and rental history details upfront, which gives you more context to weigh alongside the screening report itself.

1. Send the applicant your application link by email or text.
2. Wait for them to complete and submit it.
3. Review the submitted application for completeness.

What you should see: A completed application in your dashboard showing employment, income, and rental history the applicant entered themselves. Troubleshooting: An incomplete application is worth following up on before you move to screening. Missing rental history in particular is worth a direct question to the applicant.

Screening works in three steps, and notably, you never collect the applicant's Social Security number yourself. You enter their email or phone number, TurboTenant verifies their identity directly with them, and you're notified when the report is ready.

1. From the applicant's record, request a screening report.
2. TurboTenant reaches out to the applicant to verify their identity and, in most cases, to collect the screening fee from them.
3. Once they complete verification, you'll be notified that the report is ready to view.

What you should see: A status change on the applicant's record from "screening requested" to "report ready," typically within a day or two, sometimes the same day. Troubleshooting: If an applicant's credit is frozen, the report can't pull until they lift the freeze with the credit bureau. That's a normal consumer protection step, not a red flag on its own.

The report includes a credit score and credit history, lines of credit, credit inquiries, debt in collections, a nationwide criminal background check, and an eviction check. Read it against the written criteria from Step 1, in that order, rather than forming an impression first and looking for facts to support it.

1. Open the screening report for the applicant.
2. Compare each relevant section (credit score, eviction history, income verification) against your written criteria.
3. Note where the applicant meets, exceeds, or falls short of each specific standard.

What you should see: A pass or fail against each individual criterion, not just a vague overall impression. Troubleshooting: If an applicant fails on one criterion but you're tempted to make an exception, apply the same exception standard to every applicant going forward, or don't make it at all. Inconsistent exceptions are exactly what creates fair housing exposure.

You make the accept or deny decision, based on the written criteria you set in Step 1, applied the same way to this applicant as to every other one for this unit. If you deny an applicant, raise the deposit, or add a co-signer requirement because of something in the screening report, federal law requires a prompt adverse action notice naming the reporting agency and telling the applicant they can get a free copy of their report and dispute anything inaccurate.

1. Decide based on your written criteria, not on any impression formed outside of it.
2. If the decision is a denial or a modified offer based on the report, send an adverse action notice. TurboTenant provides a template for this.
3. Document the decision and the criteria it was based on, in case you need the record later.

What you should see: A finalized decision recorded against the applicant, and if applicable, a sent adverse action notice. Troubleshooting: If you're ever unsure whether a decision needs an adverse action notice, the safer default is to send one. It costs you nothing and closes a real compliance gap if you skip it when required.