Pennsylvania Rental Application

What information should landlords collect?

Pennsylvania rental applications are among the most crucial parts of the rental process and can help landlords get to know potential tenants and assess their qualifications.

Most property management software companies offer free rental applications. Using these fillable templates can make the process much easier for landlords, since they’ll already include the federal and state-specific requirements landlords must adhere to.

Here’s some of the information you should include in your standard rental application:

• Personal information: The applicant’s name (including co-applicants or co-signers), date of birth, email address, phone number, emergency contact, Social Security Number, smoking status, and other critical information
• Financial information: Past and current employment history, including the applicant’s income history
• Rental history: The name and contact information of previous landlords to learn more about the applicant’s past rental situations
• Professional references: Landlords may choose to verify current employment by requesting references
• Pets: If pets are allowed, applicants should disclose details about the animal they plan to bring
• Vehicle information: If a parking space is part of the rental agreement, landlords can collect information about tenant vehicles during the application process

Since applications collect sensitive data, laws specify what information landlords can obtain, the questions they can ask, and how they may use the data they collect when evaluating an application.

Here’s what to know.

Pre-Screener

Before asking an applicant to fill out a rental application, you can use an easy-to-fill pre-screener to help determine whether they’re a good fit before moving forward with a complete tenant screening.

Standard pre-screeners typically:

• Contact information,
• Employment status,
• Self-reported income,
• Self-reported credit score,
• Desired move-in date,
• Number of occupants,
• Pet information, and
• Smoking status.

Pre-screeners can help you streamline the application process, but they are not a legitimate substitute for a full tenant screening.

Federal Application Laws

Several federal laws help protect both landlords and tenants during the application process in 2026. As you build your rental application, make sure you understand and follow these five laws:

Fair Housing Act (FHA): Under this law, landlords cannot deny or treat applicants differently based on protected characteristics, including:

• Sex,
• Religion,
• Race,
• Color,
• Nationality,
• Marital Status, or
• Disability.

For example, landlords cannot ask questions such as “Are you Christian?” or “What is your nationality?” on a rental application. Including these types of questions or making rental decisions based on them would violate the FHA.

This law applies to landlords, property managers, and their employees, so full compliance is non-negotiable (42 U.S.C. §§ 3601–3619).

Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA): The ECOA prohibits landlords from discriminating against applicants who receive government assistance. It also establishes guidelines for evaluating rental and credit applications (15 U.S.C. §§ 1691–1691f).

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Under the ADA, landlords cannot treat applicants differently because of a disability and must provide reasonable accommodations to tenants when necessary (42 U.S.C. §§ 12101–12213).

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA): The FCRA requires landlords to obtain applicants’ written consent before conducting a credit check. Landlords must also inform applicants if their credit history results in a denial (15 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq.).

Civil Rights Act of 1866: This law requires landlords to treat all applicants equally and prohibits basing rental decisions on an applicant’s race or color (42 U.S.C. § 1981).

Pennsylvania Application Laws

In addition to the federal Fair Housing Act, most states have their own fair housing laws that landlords must follow.

For example, in Pennsylvania, landlords must comply with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, which protects housing applicants from discrimination based on race, color, religious creed, ancestry, age, sex, pregnancy or childbirth, national origin, familial status, and disability. Essentially, it ensures equal housing opportunities for everyone in the state (68 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 222).

Source of income: Pennsylvania does not recognize source of income as a protected characteristic under state law, but some local ordinances might. If no local protection is in place, landlords may choose whether to accept housing vouchers or other forms of rental assistance.

Criminal history: Landlords can conduct background checks as part of the application process. However, they must adhere to Fair Housing laws and cannot deny applications based solely on arrests without convictions. When evaluating convictions, landlords should consider the nature and severity of the offense, the time elapsed since it occurred, and its relevance to the property’s safety and other residents’ safety.

Eviction history: In Pennsylvania, landlords can access public eviction records and use that information to make rental decisions.

Sexual orientation & gender identity: The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act protect individuals from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Many cities and local authorities in Pennsylvania also have their own ordinances that provide additional protections.

Pets, ESAs, and Service Animals

If you allow animals in your rental units, include a section in your Pennsylvania rental application form and lease agreement to collect information about the applicant’s animals.

Pet information: Ask about the animal’s type, breed, size, age, and vaccination status to better understand potential risks and ensure the pet fits your property’s guidelines.

Pennsylvania landlords cannot deny housing to an individual with a service animal or an emotional support animal (ESA). Further, landlords cannot charge standard pet deposits, pet rent, or fees for service or ESAs.

Denial Process

Landlords can deny applications based on insufficient income, negative rental history, poor credit, criminal background, or incomplete or false information in the application. However, they must apply these standards consistently to all applicants. To avoid issues, review every application using the same qualifications.

Denial notice: Pennsylvania law requires that landlords provide a denial notice within a specific timeframe. However, in Philadelphia, the Renters’ Access Act requires landlords to issue a written or electronic denial notice within 3 business days of rejecting an application.

Credit/background denials: If you deny an applicant based on their credit score, the FCRA requires you to provide the tenant with:

• The name of the company that conducted the credit or background check,
• A notice that the applicant has the right to review and dispute the information, and
• The contact information of the reporting agency (15 U.S.C. § 1681m).

Document storage: As of 2026, Pennsylvania does not require landlords to retain documents related to a denied rental application. However, keeping these records for at least 2 years is considered good practice, especially if the denial resulted from a credit or background check.