2.2 Tenant screening
Tenant screening. Decisions you can explain, made the same way every time.
Online applications with credit, eviction and criminal reports in one place, measured against criteria you write down before the listing goes live.
Included in Starter (included) Growth (included) Portfolio (included)
APP-0931·Applied for 7C, move-in Nov 15
Priya N.
Criteria for 7C Written Sep 28
Income at least 3x rent $5,200 a month, bank-linked (3.4x)
Credit band Meets your band for this property
Eviction search No records returned
Criminal search Reviewed under your written policy
Rental history 1 of 2 references answered
Application submitted, fee paid by applicant · 9:12 AM
Reports returned · 9:20 AM
2.2.1What it does
Six things it does well, so you can stop doing them by hand.
Screening is where landlords get into trouble by being inconsistent. Lintel makes the consistent way the easy way: criteria first, then the same checklist for every applicant.
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01
Criteria before the listing
Write your income ratio, credit band, rental history and pet rules once per property. Applicants see them before they pay to apply.
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02
Applicant pays, applicant consents
The application fee and the consent to run reports are handled online. You never collect a Social Security number by email.
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03
Reports in one view
Credit summary, eviction search and criminal search sit next to the application, income documents and references. Most come back within minutes.
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04
Income you can check
Applicants can link a bank account for a read-only income check or upload pay stubs. You see the monthly figure next to your required ratio.
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05
Compare side by side
Every applicant for a unit lines up against the same criteria, with each item marked met, not met, or needs a look.
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06
Letters from your templates
Approval, conditional approval and decline letters start from templates you control. You review and send.
2.2.2How it works
Four steps, then it runs on its own.
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1
Set criteria for the property
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2
Share the application link
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3
Applicant pays and consents online
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4
Review reports against your criteria
2.2.3The small print
What to know before you switch it on.
Reports come from a consumer reporting agency partner. Lintel does not approve or decline anyone; you do. Screening rules differ by city and state, so check the fair housing and screening laws where your properties are.
Fees for this module (example rates)
- Tenant screening (credit, eviction, criminal)Applicant, paid when they apply
- $40 per applicant
- Bank-linked income checkApplicant, optional per property
- $15 per applicant
2.2.4Questions
About tenant screening.
What does screening cost?
In this demo: $40 per applicant for credit, eviction and criminal reports, paid by the applicant. The bank-linked income check is $15 more, and optional.
Can I use my own application questions?
Yes. Add questions per property, such as move-in date, vehicles or pets. Lintel blocks question types that commonly cause fair housing problems and tells you why.
Do co-signers and guarantors work?
Yes. A guarantor gets their own link, consents and pays separately, and shows up attached to the main application.
Other modules
Try tenant screening with your own units. Free for 14 days.
Import your rent roll, invite your tenants, and collect next month's rent online. Free for 14 days, no card. After that, from $1.25 per unit a month.
Rather talk first? Call (919) 555-0147, weekdays 9 to 6 ET.