31 Free Rent Verification Form Templates

A Rent Verification Form is an authorization form that you, as the new/potential landlord send to a potential tenant’s previous or current landlord in order to verify the amount of rent that the tenant currently or formerly has been paying as well as confirm his or her tenancy.

Typically, the requesting landlord sends the form to a potential tenant’s previous or current landlord in order to gather information about the tenant’s reliability. As a result, the requesting landlord will be able to make an appropriate judgment when selecting the most suitable tenant for their property using this information. The gathered information is usually about rent payment, reliability, pets’ domestication, money owed, or any other complaint relating to tenancy.

A rent verification form is also known as “Landlord Verification Form” or “Verification of Rent Form.”

The use of a rent verification form offers several advantages to a landlord.

These advantages are:

• A rental verification form is an excellent way to determine whether a potential tenant is prepared to pay rent on time and in full or if they are more inclined to play games.
• It also aids the landlord in determining whether the prospective tenant will keep the rented property in good condition.
• It helps the landlord get a hint about how the potential tenant relates with neighbors and the landlords.
• The information gathered helps the landlord make an informed judgment when selecting a tenant for their property.

The use of a rent verification form involves three significant steps.

The following is a step-by-step guide to completing the rental verification process:

Collect the rental application

The potential tenant sends their rental application request. After receiving the application, you (the potential landlord) should verify that it has the tenant’s name, contact information, their last place of residence, and preferably the contact information of their current or previous landlord and the reasons for vacating (where applicable).

Take consent for a background check

This phase involves the background check authorization form from the potential tenant to conduct a background check with the previous landlord because it may be inappropriate to do so without the consent of the potential tenant.

Any prospective tenant who is a good fit for renting will not hesitate to permit you to call their former or current landlord in pursuit of performing a background check.

Prepare and send the rent verification form

The rent verification form can be sent manually or electronically, depending on which means seems the most suitable for the landlord. The former landlord is expected to respond to the request at their convenience.

You should always check to ensure that the applicant’s details on the rental application form are like the details on the verification form before sending it.

Tip: In order to increase the chances of getting a response, the requesting party should include a completed return envelope with a paid postage fee, where a manual mode is used.

There are a few sections in a rent verification form that are necessary to be in proper sequence and format for it to be considered eligible.

A rent verification form comprises of the following:

Introduction

This section of the rent verification form highlights the basic information about the parties involved in rent verification.

Such include:

• The date on which the rent verification form is sent to the previous/ current landlord of the potential tenant.
•  “To whom it may concern”- Include this opening phrase (a form of greetings) before proceeding with the details of the potential tenant. This is usually used when the name of the receiving party (previous landlord) is not known.
• The name and some basic information about the potential tenant.
• The name and the location of the previously rented property.
• The name and contact information about the potential landlord (requestor). The contact information is necessary for receiving a response from the former landlord.

An example of the introduction section would be:

To whom it may concern,

David Rodgers has granted us, BERICK Investment, the permission to verify his tenancy in your apartment located in Telluride, USA. He has specified that he is a current tenant at your property. Kindly send back the filled form to either of the following:

FAX Number: 2252525
Email: [email protected]

Body

This comprises a set of questions that the former landlord should answer to verify the tenant, depending on what the requesting party wants to know about the potential tenant. Basically, the questions should be framed in a way that makes it easy for the previous landlord to respond.

Below are some of the most critical questions that should be considered/included in the process of writing the body section of a rent verification form:

1. Is the person mentioned above currently a tenant on your property? If yes, is the person current on all rent payments if this is the case?
   The first question allows the landlord to confirm or deny the applicant’s tenancy, while the second question seeks to understand whether the applicant is up-to-date with rent payment.
   
2. Has the tenant ever been late on rent payments in the previous year? If yes, how many times have they done it?
   The answers to these questions confirm whether the applicant is a rent defaulter or not.
   
3. Has the applicant ever gone beyond thirty days without paying their rent?
   This question will help the potential landlord to understand the applicant’s reliability in rent payments.
   
4. Did the tenant domesticate any pets? If so, how many and what kind of animals were there?
   This will help the landlord see how best he/she can address the issue of pest domestication with the potential tenant.
   
5. Have you ever had to give the applicant a notice at any time during the last year?
   The previous/ current landlord is required to report whether the tenant had committed an offense that warranted a notice or a warning. This could relate to property damage, late rent payments, or other forms of noncompliance.
   
6. Did you have to withhold the deposit because of damages, or will you have to do so?
   This question seeks an answer of whether the applicant accepts liabilities whenever required.
   
7. Have you ever gotten any complaints from this applicant’s neighbors? If so, what kind of complaints were they?
   This question will help you find out how the applicant relates with the neighbors and be able to make a sound decision about accepting him/her as your tenant.
   
8. Has the tenant completed their lease terms?
   This question seeks a YES or NO answer, which will assist the potential landlord in establishing whether the potential tenant adheres to the initially stated lease agreement rules.
   
9. If the tenant is currently residing at your property, have they informed you about their decision to vacate?
   This will help the potential landlord establish whether the applicant is sneaking out of their current premises or they are leaving with the landlord’s consent.
   
10. What was the applicant’s total sum of rent balance during the last month of tenancy?
    The response will help the potential landlord establish whether the applicant has a tendency to accumulate rent arrears.
    
11. Does the tenant have any rent arrears?
    This question seeks to determine the possibility of the tenant vacating without clearing the rent arrears.
    
12. Is the tenant relocating voluntarily or as a result of a court order? And why?
    This question assesses whether the applicant was forced to leave the rented premises or evicted using a court order and the reasons for vacating.
    
13. Would you rent out your property to this tenant again?
    The response to this question could summarize everything about the applicant. The potential landlord may use the response to make his decision about renting his property to the applicant.

Signing off

Both the requesting and the receiving landlord should sign the rent verification form and write their names on it to be considered valid. The requesting landlord should sign the document immediately after completing the introduction section before sending it to the other landlord. If the previous landlord sends back the rent verification form without his signature, a follow-up should be done for him to sign.

Note: You should always request the previous or current landlord of the potential tenant to send back the filled form via the given contact details (Email, Fax, courier services, etc.) as soon as possible.

Following are some free downloadable templates for you:

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