Qualifications

RESIDENT SCREENING POLICY FOR CONVENTIONAL COMMUNITIES 

Thank you for your interest in our community. Before you apply to rent an apartment home in our community, please take the time to review the screening requirements. All persons 18 years of age or older, and not dependents, will be required to complete separate rental applications. Applicants with adult dependents and applying for residency will complete a joint application. The term "applicant(s)" under this policy means the person or persons that will be signing the Lease as "residents"; the term "occupant(s)" in this policy means the person or persons that are authorized occupants under the Lease. 

Please also note that these are our current rental criteria; nothing contained in these requirements shall constitute a guarantee or representation by us that all residents and occupants currently residing in the community have met these requirements. There may be residents and occupants that have resided in the community prior to these requirements going into effect; additionally, our ability to verify whether these requirements have been met is limited to the information we receive from the various resident credit reporting services used. 

Statement of Non-Discrimination and Fair Housing Policy 

It is the policy of this community to comply with all applicable fair housing laws including those which prohibit discrimination against any person based on race, sex, religion, color, familial status, national origin, age, or disability. Housing shall be made available without regard to actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status.  

This community will make reasonable accommodation(s) to persons with disabilities if such accommodation(s) will allow a prospect and/or applicant an experience comparable to those of non-disabled renters. Any person can make a request for reasonable accommodation in writing to the property in which they wish to visit, apply and/or reside. 

This community participates in alternative deposit options. We utilize a third-party provider that Residents will secure in lieu of a One-Month’s Rent fee for the property. The tenant will be responsible for maintaining the policy through the term of Tenancy. If the prospect fails to meet the standard Credit Policy, Employment Policy, or Rental History criteria, additional deposits and, or fee may be required. 

Qualifying Rental Criteria 

All visitors must present a valid driver’s license or government issued photo ID in order to view the community.  

1. Occupancy Guidelines - The following occupancy standards apply based on 2 persons per bedroom, plus one per apartment. 

* Residents who exceed these occupancy standards during the lease term, will be required, upon the end of the current lease term, to either: 

• Transfer into another available apartment which has more bedrooms; or 
• Move out 

Rent for the new apartment will be at the rental rate at the time the lease is entered into for the new apartment. 

2. Age - Applicants must be 18 years of age or older unless deemed to be an adult under applicable law with respect to the execution of contracts. In respect to property jurisdiction within state law some applicants will be required to provide current proof of emancipation. 

3. Credit - A credit report will be completed on all applicants to verify credit ratings. Income plus verified credit history will be entered into a credit scoring model to determine rental eligibility and potential deposit requirements. Unfavorable accounts which will negatively influence this score include, but are not limited to: collections, charge-off, repossession, and current recent delinquency; open bankruptcies, or bankruptcies discharged and/or closed within the past 12 months, will result in an automatic denial of the application. Bankruptcies between 1 year and 5 years will be evaluated with the scoring model, and could result in the application being denied, or an additional deposit being charged.  In addition, the rental scoring process may consider information such as income to rent ratio, previous eviction, and subprime credit record. 

   ADDITIONAL DEPOSIT OPTIONS WILL BE REQUIRED FOR ALL CREDIT RECOMMENDATIONS BELOW AN ACCEPT LEVEL, NOT INCLUDING A DENY RECOMMENDATION. 
   Refer Credit Recommendation occurs on applicants with little or no credit history. In such cases, additional checks for rental and income/employment will be completed. If the criteria are met in these checks, an additional deposit will be required. On rental history, applicant must have 12 months of positive rental history within the past 24 months. (Please refer to Clause 8 of this document for detailed information on rental history requirements.) When no rental history exists, additional deposits will be required.  

4. Income - Gross income for all applicants in one apartment home will be combined and entered into the credit scoring model for income eligibility. All applicants will be asked to produce consecutive and most recent pay stubs for the last 4 weeks from Application Date. If handwritten pay stubs are supplied, the documents must be validly notarized to be deemed sufficient and income verification will be completed with the current employer. Applicants must have a minimum combined gross income of 2.5 times the monthly rent. Additional sources of verifiable income may be considered. These sources may include: child support, grants, pensions, GI benefits, disability, trust funds, social security and savings accounts. (The applicant must supply six current consecutive months of bank statements if any of the additional sources of income listed above cannot be provided directly from the supplier.) 

   Some credit scoring results will necessitate further income verification. Verification with the employer will be completed or applicant may be asked to produce additional 6 months of financial statements/records. 

5. Employment - If employment is to begin work shortly, the applicant must provide a "letter of intent" to hire from the employer. Additional Verification of offer letter’s will be performed.  

6. Self-Employment, Retired or Unemployed - Such applicants must provide the previous year's income tax return and the previous two month's bank statements, or twelve months of financial statements and must exhibit no negative references. Seasonal employment must be verified by providing the prior year's tax return. Workers Compensation and Unemployment is a Non-Qualifying Source of Income.  

7. Criminal History - A criminal background check will be conducted for each applicant and occupant age 18 years or more. A landlord is not required to rent to any person whose tenancy would constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals or whose tenancy would result in substantial physical damage to the property of others. 
   Any conviction for manufacture or distribution of any federally controlled substance and applicants who are required to register as sex offenders for life will result in an automatic denial of tenancy. Management reserves the right to deny any felony and misdemeanor convictions. Automatic denials include but are not limited to sex offenders, assault/aggressive convictions, violent crimes, crimes against persons or property, use of and distribution of controlled substance, and prostitution.  
   All other criminal convictions will require additional screening, which will require additional time for screening and an additional charge of $15.00, which shall be paid in full prior to the additional criminal screening, within 2 days of the initial screening result. 
   When you apply, screening will be run on income, credit, other areas in the screening criteria and criminal history.  If the screening passes the non-criminal requirements and you have no criminal convictions, then your application may be accepted immediately.  If you do have criminal convictions, you may be given a conditional approval or may not be approved to rent, pending the outcome of the criminal screening. If the convictions would constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals or whose tenancy would result in substantial physical damage to the property of others. 
   Determinations as to criminal screening will be made on a case by case basis, and will be based on the following factors and information, which will be required for every conviction, and we cannot complete the application screening without this information:  1) the facts of the crime you were convicted of; 2) the actual charge you were convicted of; 3) your age at the time of the conviction; 4) criminal convictions prior to the conviction; 5) criminal convictions and pending charges since the conviction; 6) how much time has passed since the conviction; and for drug possession charges 7) if you are in, or have completed recovery or treatment since the conviction.  
   Failure to provide any information is a basis for denial of tenancy. 
   Please remember that this requirement does not constitute a guarantee or representation that residents or occupants currently residing in our community have not been convicted of or subject to deferred adjudication for a felony, certain misdemeanors or sex offenses requiring registration under applicable law; there may be residents or occupants that have resided in the community prior to this requirement going into effect; additionally, our ability to verify this information is limited to the information made available to us by the resident credit reporting services used. 
   Bellaire Multifamily Management LLC and its agents reserve the right to reject the application of any individual who had received deferred adjudication or conviction of a misdemeanor or a felony offense. Examples of these offenses include, but are not limited to, the following: 

*Variable, Dependent on classification of conviction 

8. Rental History - Evaluation of verifiable rental or mortgage payment history for the last 12 months will be required. In these instances, applicant must have a minimum of 12 months’ cumulative verifiable rental or mortgage payment history within the last 12 months. In such instances, if a previous landlord cannot be contacted, 6 consecutive months of proof of payment must be verified and a copy of the lease contract must be provided. Applicants not having verifiable rental or mortgage history will be required to pay an additional deposit. 
   When applications also depend on the results of a rental history investigation for an approval/denial determination, applications for residency will automatically be denied for the following reasons:

   1. An outstanding debt to a previous landlord, including an eviction, judgment, or a breach of a prior lease older than 3 years must be paid in full.  (This may result in a conditional approval). 

   2. Any eviction, judgment, breach of lease less than 3 years old, or eviction currently in process, will result in a denial.  

   3. More than  late payments and/or 1 NSF within 12 months or 2 NSFs within 2 years 

9. Guarantors - Guarantors will be accepted for applicants who do not meet the required rent-to-income ratio. Only one guarantor per apartment is permissible. For guarantor-supported applications, an additional deposit could be required. The deposit level will be based on the credit analysis. The guarantor will be required to complete an application and pay a full application fee. Guarantors must have a gross monthly income of 5 times the monthly rent and meet all other qualifying criteria identified in this screening policy. The guarantor will be asked to sign a Guaranty of Resident Obligations to support the application. Guarantors may be relatives or an employer; friends may not serve as a Guarantor. Any bankruptcies within 5 years will be an automatic denial.  

10. Animals - If animals are accepted at the community where application is made, no more than two animals are allowed per apartment. Aggressive breeds will not be allowed. See list below for animals not allowed. A non-refundable pet fee per pet will be due at move-in, and a monthly pet rent will be billed. Additionally, prior approval from management will be required. If the property participates in Pet DNA, a swab of your pet will also be required on the day of move-in.  Aquariums will be allowed with a 20-gallon maximum on the first floor only with proof of insurance for the entire term of the lease. 

11. Vehicles – One vehicle per adult lease holder. Vehicles must be operational and have current registration and inspection. Boats or trailers are not allowed at any time. Shipping Containers or Pods are not allowed on property. 

12. Renter's Insurance Requirement – Bellaire Multifamily requires all residents to carry a minimum of $100,000.00 Personal Liability Insurance coverage. In addition, we require that you identify the property as a "Party of Interest" or "Interested Party" (or similar language as may be available) on the renter's liability insurance policy. Proof of this coverage is required at initial lease signing and lease renewal. 

13. Water Furniture - Water furniture will only be allowed in first floor apartments with proof of fully paid insurance for the term of the lease. 

14. Deposit Levels - The results of the credit and other factors will determine the amount of Deposit Coverage. 

15. Credit Builder – This property participates in Credit Builder. Ask your onsite associate for details.  

16. Falsification of Application - Any falsification in Applicant's paperwork will result in the automatic denial of Application. In the event that an Applicant falsifies his/her paperwork, owner has the right to hold all monies paid to apply towards liquidated damages. 

17. Application Fees - As allowable by State and Local legislation, a separate check for the application fee must be provided with the completed rental application with the completed rental application form. This check is deposited on the same business day, or the following business day following the weekend or a holiday. 

In the event that the Applicant becomes a resident in Owner's apartment community, Applicant's execution of this Application shall authorize the Owner, in the event of the Applicant's death to: (i) grant to the person designated as Emergency Contact access to the Applicant's unit at a reasonable time and in the presence of the Owner or the Owner's agent; (ii) allow this person to remove any of the Applicant's property or any other contents found in the Applicant's unit or any of Applicant's property located in the mailbox, storerooms or common areas; and (iii) refund any monies, less lawful deductions, to this person. Applicant also authorizes the Owner to allow this person access to remove all contents of the unit as well as property in the mailbox, storerooms and common areas in the event that Applicant becomes seriously ill. 

AUTHORIZATION: Applicant represents that all of the information provided by applicant on this application is true and complete and authorizes the verification of same and the performance of a credit check on Applicant as appropriate by all available means. In the event that Applicant provides any false or misleading information in this Application, Owner shall have the right to automatically reject this Application and the Application Fee and Administrative Fee will be automatically forfeited by the Applicant. Applicant further acknowledges that an investigative consumer report includes information as to character, general reputation, personal characteristics, and mode of living, whichever are applicable, of the Application may be made and that any person on which an investigative consumer report will be made has the right to request a complete and accurate disclosure of the nature and scope of the investigation requested and also has the right to request a written summary of the person's right under The Fair Credit Reporting Act. Applicant hereby authorizes the Owner or the Owner's Agent to obtain and hereby instructs any consumer reporting agency designated by Owner or Owner's Agent to furnish a consumer report under The Fair Credit Reporting Act to Owner or Owner's Agent to use such consumer report in attempting to collect any amount due and owing under this Application, the Applicant's lease (to be executed after Application approval) or for any other permissible purpose. 

APPLICATION FEES AND NONREFUNDABLE FEES: 

Simultaneously with the execution of this Application, Applicant will pay: 

Any NSF’s or ACH returns will be billed at $75 per occurrence.  

Applicant acknowledges that Owner's acceptance of Applicant as a resident at the property is conditional upon: (i) Owner's approval of this Application; and (ii) receipt of an executed Apartment Lease Agreement from Applicant. In the event any of these conditions have not been met, Owner shall have no obligation to lease to Applicant. 

Administrative Fee Returned If this Application is denied, the Administrative Fee will be refunded to Applicant within 30 days of submitting application, should we not be entitled to retain the fee, as stipulated below.  

Administrative Fee Retained by Owner Owner shall be entitled to retain the Administrative Fee as liquidated damages; in which case, all further obligations to lease the premises to Applicant shall be terminated if: (i) the Application is withdrawn, for any reason, after signing this Application; or 

(ii) the Application is accepted, but Applicant does not sign an Apartment Lease Agreement within 72 hours; or (iii) if the Applicant has provided false or misleading information within this Application. For the purposes of this provision, if the Applicant is required to pay an additional Fee in order to qualify for occupancy, the Application shall be deemed conditionally accepted prior to the payment of such additional Fee and the failure to pay the additional Fee will entitle Owner to retain the originally paid Application and Administration, even if the Application is subsequently rejected by the Applicant's failure to pay the required additional Application and Administrative Fee. 

Dated effective on the date Owner or Owner's representative has received a completed Application from Applicant, as indicated above. 

Application will not be considered until the Application has been fully executed and returned, and all applicable Application and Administrative fees have been paid. You also agree to submit proof of income, proof of rental, and all other sources of variable information, as outlined in the criteria within 48 hours of the application. If documents are not provided within this time frame it could result of cancellation of application and no fees paid will be returned.  

Applicants may be denied for the following reasons:  

• Falsification of application by applicant(s) 

• Incomplete application by applicant(s)  

• Insufficient income or submission of proof of income 

• Poor credit history of any applicant (credit report) 

• Poor rental history of any applicant (rental verification is obtained) such as; Non-Payment of rent or frequent late payments 

• Lease violations such as, but not limited to: poor housekeeping; poor supervision of minor occupants; unruly or destructive applicants, and/or applicant’s minor occupants or applicant’s guest; violence to a person or property by applicant(s), etc. 

Only certified funds will be accepted for all: Application, Holding/Admin fees, Deposit or Rental Monies for First Month’s Rent.  

NO CASH WILL BE ACCEPTED AT ANYTIME 

I ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW THE COMMUNITY RENTAL SELECTION CRITERIA, WHICH INCLUDES REASON(S) WHY MY APPLICATION MAY BE DENIED, SUCH AS CRIMINAL HISTORY, CREDIT HISTORY, CURRENT INCOME, AND RENTAL HISTORY. I UNDERSTAND THAT IF I DO NOT MEET THE COMMUNITY SELECTION CRITERIA OR IF I FAIL TO ANSWER ANY QUESTION OR GIVE ANY FALSE INFORMATION, THE COMMUNITY MAY REJECT THE APPLICATION, RETAIN ALL APPLICATION FEES, ADMINISTRATION FEES, AND DEPOSITS AS LIQUID DAMAGE FOR IT’S TIME AND EXPENSE. I HEREBY AUTHORIZE ANY EMPLOYER, LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY, FEDERAL, STATE, COUNTY OR CITY AGENCY, CONSUMER AGENCY, OR INSTITUTION TO RELEASE INFORMATION TO BELLAIRE MULTIFAMILY MANAGEMENT LLC AND/OR ITS’ AGENTS. I VOLUNTARILY WAIVE ALL RIGHTS OF RECOURSE AND RELEASE ALL THE ABOVE OF LIABILITY FOR COMPLIANCE WITH THIS AUTHORIZATION. I UNDERSTAND THAT SHOULD I LEASE AN APARTMENT, BELLAIRE MULTIFAMILY MANAGEMENT LLC AND IT’S AGENTS SHALL HAVE CONTINUING RIGHT TO REVIEW MY CREDIT AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION, PAYMENT HISTORY AND OCCUPANCY HISTORY FOR ACCOUNT REVIEW PURPOSES AND FOR IMPROVING APPLICATION METHODS.