Minnesota Rental Application

What type of information should landlords collect?

From Duluth to Plymouth, the Minnesota rental application plays a crucial role in your screening process. It gives you the information you need to evaluate applicants fairly, flag potential risks, and find renters who are a good fit for your property.

TurboTenant makes it fast and easy to send, receive, and manage your rental applications online. Here’s a sample rental application form to streamline the process and save you time.

Here’s what to include in your Minnesota rental application:

• Personal information: The names of applicants (along with co-applicants and co-signers), date of birth, Social Security numbers, email, phone number, vehicle details, smoking status, and emergency contact.
• Financial information: An applicant’s income history and current employment status will verify their ability to afford rent on time.
• Rental history: You can request details on their current, previous, and past residences. References: Professional references can verify employment details. Rental references can provide you with more insight from previous landlords.
• Pets: Inquire about the number of pets, size, type/breed, and status.

Rental applications collect sensitive information, such as financial details and Social Security numbers. There are federal and state laws that regulate the types of questions you can ask (and how you use them to select a tenant).

We’ll take a closer look at these regulations as we review pre-screeners, rental application laws, pets, and the denial process.

Pre-Screener

Not every renter will meet your baseline criteria, and that’s where pre-screeners come in. A pre-screener is a brief questionnaire that renters complete when they find your listing. They don’t replace the Minnesota rental application, but they do inform you who is qualified before they can officially apply.

Here’s what a pre-screener typically asks for:

• Contact information (name, phone number, email address)
• Employment status and income details
• A self-reported credit score
• Household size
• Desired move-in date
• Pets
• Smoking status

If the pre-screener meets your criteria, you can send out the complete online rental application form with confidence.

Federal Application Laws

Even though you call the shots as a landlord, every Minnesota rental application must follow federal housing laws. These rules aim to ensure a fair and legal screening process.

Fair Housing Act (FHA): Landlords can’t discriminate against the following protected characteristics:

• Race
• Color
• National origin
• Religion
• Sex
• Familial status
• Disability

Landlords, property managers, and employees can’t deny housing or ask questions about these protected characteristics. Discriminatory advertising and unequal terms in renting are prohibited (Fair Housing Act).

Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA): Landlords can’t discriminate against the protected characteristics outlined in the FHA, or against applicants who have received public assistance or have lived in public housing.

This law regulates how landlords handle credit reports and provides guidelines for reporting to applicants (Equal Credit Opportunity Act).

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Landlords can’t deny an applicant solely based on a disability. Landlords must accommodate renters with disabilities (Americans with Disabilities Act).

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA): Landlords must obtain written consent from an applicant before conducting a credit check. If an application is denied based on credit history, the landlord must inform the applicant (Fair Credit Reporting Act).

Civil Rights Act of 1866: Landlords are legally obligated to treat all applicants equally. Discrimination based on race and color is against the law (Civil Rights Act of 1866).

Minnesota Application Laws

Minnesota landlord-tenant laws include the Minnesota Human Rights Act and Minnesota Statutes, Section 504B.

Source of income: According to the Minnesota Human Rights Act, “status with regard to public assistance” is listed as a protected characteristic. Landlords can’t discriminate based on source of income, including Section 8 vouchers (Minnesota Human Rights Act).

On the local level, Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Bloomington have additional laws related to sources of income.

Criminal history: Under the Minnesota Human Rights Act, landlords may conduct a criminal background check on an applicant. Landlords must apply the same screening policies to all applicants. Applicants have the legal right to review and correct errors in their report (Minnesota Statutes § 504B.241).

Minneapolis has its own set of laws regarding look-back periods for misdemeanors, felonies, and serious felonies.

Eviction history: Landlords may legally consider an applicant’s eviction history.

Sexual orientation and gender identity: The Minnesota Human Rights Act cites sex and gender identity as protected characteristics. It is prohibited to deny an applicant based on these factors (Minnesota Human Rights Act).

Portable tenant screening reports: Minnesota does not regulate the use of portable tenant screening reports. Landlords can use them to screen renters.

Pets, ESAs, and Service Animals

Pet Information: If you allow pets in the home, please ask whether the applicant has a pet, an ESA (Emotional Support Animal), and/or a service animal on your Minnesota rental application.

Fair Housing Act: The FHA protects applicants with ESAs/service animals against discrimination. In these cases, landlords may not charge a pet deposit, pet fee, or monthly pet rent. They cannot deny a renter based on the breed, size, or weight of their ESA/service animal.

Even with these laws in place, tenants are liable for any pet-related damages to your property.

Denial Process

Always maintain consistency in the denial process for all applicants. You can legally deny an application based on:

• Insufficient income
• Poor credit history
• Rental history
• Criminal background (following legal guidelines)
• False/incomplete information

Denial notice: Minnesota does not require landlords to give applicants a denial notice.

Credit/Background denials: If denied based on the results of a credit or background check, the Fair Credit Reporting Act requires an adverse action notice including:

• Name and contact information of the reporting agency
• Outline of the applicant’s right to dispute errors

Document storage: Always keep a renter’s application form and screening report for your records. These can help you defend against claims of discrimination.