How to Qualify for a Rental Home in Las Vegas: What We Actually Check

Most rental applications in Las Vegas are declined for reasons the applicant could have seen coming. The management company had a sheet of qualifications, the applicant never read it, and an $85 fee went to find out what a two-minute read would have told them. Here is ours, in plain English, so you can decide before you pay.

The short version

• You are 18 or older, and every adult who will live in the home applies.
• Your credit score is 650 or better, with no evictions in the past five years and no unpaid utility bills in collections.
• Your income is at least three times the monthly rent, you can prove it, and you have been with your current employer for six months.
• You can give us three years of rental history with landlord names and phone numbers.
• You pass a criminal background check.

If all five are true, apply with confidence. If one is not, keep reading, because some of these have more give than they look.

Credit: 650 is the line, but it is not a wall

Our published minimum is 650. What people do not know is what happens on either side of it. With a score of 600 or higher, most of our tenants pay a security deposit of one and a half months’ rent, plus a pet deposit if there is a pet. Between 500 and 600, the application goes to the broker for a personal review. Sometimes the answer is a double deposit; sometimes it is a slightly higher rent. Either way it is one offer, and it is not negotiable. Below 500, we cannot approve the application, however much we would like to.

So a 620 is not a no. It is a conversation about the deposit. A 480 is a no, and it is kinder to say so before you pay the fee. The full FICO sheet is on our forms page.

Income: three times the rent, and it has to be provable

For a home renting at $2,000 a month, that is $6,000 a month of gross income across the applicants. If your credit is weaker but your income is strong, the bar moves to four times the rent. The word that matters is verifiable: pay stubs, an employer who answers the phone, or for anyone self-employed or retired, signed tax returns, CPA statements or bank statements. Income we cannot verify is income we cannot count.

Rental history: three years, with phone numbers

We call your previous landlords. Have their names and numbers ready when you apply, and if you owned your home or lived with family for part of that time, say so on the application rather than leaving a gap. A gap looks like something to hide; an explanation looks like a person.

Pets: yes, within limits

Many of our homes take pets. The limits are 30 pounds and under, two at most, and no breeds classed as dangerous. No ferrets, no snakes, nothing poisonous or illegal, and no aquarium over ten gallons. Each pet is approved individually with a short form before it moves in. Service animals are a different matter entirely: they are always accepted, with the proper documentation, and are not pets under the policy.

What the fee is, and what it is not

The application fee is $85 per adult and it is non-refundable, because it pays for the credit and background checks whether or not you are approved. It is not a deposit and it does not hold the home. If you want a home held while your application is processed, that is a separate holding deposit, which is applied to your security deposit when you sign and refunded within five business days if you are declined.

Before you apply

Look at what we have on the available rentals page, read the qualifications sheet once, and gather your landlord numbers and income documents. Then the application takes about ten minutes, and the answer usually takes a couple of business days. Questions first? The FAQ covers the ones we hear most, and a person answers the phone Monday thru Friday.