A tenant pre-screening questionnaire template you can print, save as
a PDF or copy into your own form. It has a header for your unit's facts and
fifteen short fields for the applicant, and each field names the written
criterion it serves.
Send the identical version to every applicant for a unit, keep
a dated copy next to the criteria it was written against, and change the form
only when the criteria change. It is a pre-screen, not an application: it holds
no documents and no identity numbers.
The reasoning behind this, in full: Tenant pre-screening questions: what to ask before a showing, and what to leave out.
Source: releaser.io/tools/tenant-pre-screening-questionnaire/
Timing
1. Preferred move-in date
Maps to: the availability date in the header.
2. Lease length wanted, in months
Maps to: the lease term(s) offered.
3. Current home: notice given / lease ends on [date] / month to month
Maps to: the availability date. A fixed end date tells you how soon they can sign.
Household size
4. Total number of occupants, counting yourself
Maps to: the occupancy limit. Record the number only; no names, ages or relationships.
5. Every adult occupant will submit an application (yes / no)
Maps to: your rule that each adult on the lease applies.
Budget
Fill in the header first. Each answer here is a yes or no against a figure the applicant can already see.
6. The rent and deposit in the header fit your budget (yes / no)
Maps to: the rent and deposit, as published.
7. Combined household income meets the criterion in the header (yes / no)
Maps to: the income criterion, as written. The household total, not one person.
8. Income can be documented when you apply (yes / no)
Maps to: your documentation rule. Any lawful source counts; record only yes or no.
Pets
An assistance animal is not a pet. If an applicant mentions one, pass it to whoever in your firm handles accommodation requests.
9. Animals in the household: type and number, or none
Maps to: the pet terms.
10. You have read the pet terms in the header (yes / no)
Maps to: the pet deposit, pet rent and limits you disclosed.
Must-haves
11. Features the home must have (for example parking, laundry, bathrooms, floor level)
Maps to: the unit's listed features.
12. Unit number you are asking about, checked against its photos and floor plan
Maps to: the specific unit on offer, where one address has several.
Logistics
13. Best way to reach you: email / phone / text
Maps to: how the booking link is sent.
14. We may text showing confirmations and reminders to this number (yes / no)
Maps to: your consent record for text messages.
15. Days and times this week that suit a showing
Maps to: your showing calendar.
What to leave out
This form has no field for any of the following, and an applicant's answers
should not be prompted toward them. Protected classes are set by federal law,
published by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, and extended by
many states, provinces and cities. Nothing here interprets a statute;
check the rules where the building is and have your criteria reviewed by someone
qualified to do it.
- Marital or family status, children or pregnancy. The occupant count in field 4 is the only household detail on it.
- Birthplace, nationality, ancestry, home language or accent.
- Religion, including holidays or a place of worship.
- Health, disability or medication, including what an assistance animal is for.
- Age, beyond confirming that each applicant is an adult.
- Where income comes from. Field 8 asks only whether it can be documented.
- Pay stubs, ID, a Social Security or Social Insurance number, references or credit and background questions. Those belong to the application, later, if at all.
Before adding a field of your own, apply the same test the
fifteen above pass: point at the line in your written criteria it serves. No line,
no field.
