Your Standards
Your Standards
It is federal law requirement that landlords put their rental standards in writing. If you don’t have your standards in writing (and, unfortunately, few landlords do), you are liable to end up in a pickle if someone accuses you of violating this rule. Your standards do not have to be complex but should be able to be produced if someone at a local or federal agency, or anyone off the street, requests a copy of them. Written standards can be as simple as this:
Qualifications for Tenant Selection for Majestic Realty, LLC—Lease Options
- No landlord tenant judgements unpaid.
- Ability to pay all outstanding judgements/collections.
- Good landlord reference.
- Gross monthly income equal to three times monthly rental rate.
- If any bankruptcy, it must be discharged.
- Option fee available or must be negotiated/financed.
- Prefer they have spoken with a mortgage representative.
Landlords
On my lease option standards I don’t put a credit score, but I do state that if they have a bankruptcy it must be discharged. I also don’t put length of employment, but you can. These are only my standards for lease options—my standards for my regular rentals are stricter. You must establish your standards and they must be in writing.
Excerpt from Investing in Real Estate with Lease Options and "Subject-to" Deals.