West Virginia Rental Application

What information should landlords collect?

As a landlord, you already have enough to worry about, and rental applications shouldn’t add to the stress. To streamline the process, use an online rental application form to manage applicants, track renter leads, and stay compliant.

Your free West Virginia rental application form should collect:

• Name(s) of applicants, co-applicants, and co-signers,
• Social Security numbers,
• Date of birth,
• Phone/email,
• Employment and income,
• Rental history,
• Pets,
• Emergency contacts,
• References,
• Smoking status, and
• Vehicle information.

Since these forms collect sensitive information, federal and state laws govern what they can request and how landlords use them.

Keep reading for a deep dive into the legal guardrails every West Virginia landlord needs to know, plus a review of pre-screeners, pets, denial processes, and more.

Pre-Screener 

When a company is hiring, they don’t let just anybody walk in for an interview. They use resumes to screen applicants before selecting the most promising candidates to move forward. Start thinking like a CEO and use a pre-screener before sending out your standard rental application.

In addition to personal and contact details, including name, date of birth, and phone number, a pre-screener usually asks for:

• Employment and income,
• Self-reported credit score,
• Number of occupants,
• Smoking status,
• Move-in date, and
• Pets/service animals.

After reviewing the pre-screener, you’ll decide whether to send the renter your full application form. Importantly, this preliminary screening won’t replace the official application (but it can help keep your inbox from overflowing).

Federal Application Laws 

When renting out a property in the Appalachian region, landlords must comply with federal fair housing laws. These are the key points every landlord needs to know:

Fair Housing Act (FHA): The FHA lists race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, and disability as protected characteristics.

Landlords, property managers, and employees who select renters can’t discriminate against applicants based on these FHA-protected characteristics or even ask questions about them. The FHA prohibits discriminatory advertising and unequal rental terms (42 U.S.C. §§ 3601–3619).

Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA): This law protects applicants who have received public assistance of any kind, explains how landlords assess credit reports, and outlines reporting processes for applicants (15 U.S.C. §§ 1691–1691f).

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Landlords can’t discriminate against or deny applicants solely based on a disability, and they must accommodate the renter’s condition (42 U.S.C. §§ 12101–12213).

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA): Under the FCRA, landlords must obtain an applicant’s written consent to conduct a credit check and inform the applicant if they deny the application based on credit history (15 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq.).

Civil Rights Act of 1866: Landlords are required to treat all applicants equally and can’t discriminate based on race or color (42 U.S.C. § 1981).

West Virginia Application Laws 

In addition to West Virginia landlord-tenant laws, all landlords in the Mountain State must comply with the West Virginia Fair Housing Act.

Blindness: As of 2026, blindness is a legally protected characteristic in West Virginia, so landlords can’t discriminate against applicants based on this condition (W. Va. Code § 16B-18-5).

Ancestry: Landlords also can’t discriminate against an applicant based on their ancestry (W. Va. Code § 16B-18-5).

Portable tenant screening reports: Landlords may consider portable tenant screening reports in West Virginia, but aren’t required to accept them.

Pets, ESAs, and Service Animals 

Nearly 80% of West Virginia is covered by forests, meaning your local renters are most likely nature lovers (and animal lovers, too). So, if you’re not already asking about pets in your fillable West Virginia rental application form, now’s the time to start.

Pet information: Throw yourself a bone and include a section for pets, emotional support animals (ESAs), and service animals in your application form. Always ask about the number of pets, pet type, and pet size.

Fair Housing Act: Did you know that landlords can’t legally discriminate against or deny an applicant solely due to their ESA or service animal? They also can’t charge a pet deposit, pet rent, or a pet fee for an ESA/service animal, or deny an applicant based on the breed, size, or weight of their ESA/service animal.

Landlords can, however, hold the tenant responsible for any damage caused by the tenant’s service animal (or pet) to the rental property.

Denial Process

A consistent denial process across all applicants is essential; otherwise, you may leave yourself open to discrimination claims.

In West Virginia, landlords can legally deny applicants due to:

• Insufficient income (which can signal complicated rent collection),
• Credit history,
• Background check, and
• False/incomplete information.

Denial notice: West Virginia landlords don’t have to send denial notices to rejected applicants.

Credit/Background denials: The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires landlords to send an adverse action notice to applicants whom they denied based on credit or background checks. They must include the reporting agency’s name and contact details, and state the renter’s right to dispute errors (15 U.S.C. § 1681m).

Document storage: West Virginia law doesn’t require landlords to store documents, but we recommend keeping denied applications and screening reports on file for at least 2 years to protect against discrimination claims. Use TurboTenant to store all important landlord documents (for free).