What documentation is needed to sign a lease? (Austin, Portland: rental, good credit)

[tfwo]

Hi folks,

First thanks to the many of you who post here, I've learned a lot about the Austin area just reading your posts.

My wife and I will be relocating to Austin soon. I'm relocating my established, fast growing business (which is run entirely online and will continue uninterrupted), and my wife works from home so will be keeping her same job. I want to know what kind of documentation landlords will expect to have presented in order to sign a lease? I suspect that varies a little, but if you can generalize.

I presume income documentation is probably the biggest thing since they want to make sure you can afford the rent. That's easy for my wife, who has a W2 and paycheck stubs. Being self-employed, I have no such typical documentation of income. I also have several sources of income (primarily my company, but some consulting, and other sources). Would my last couple tax returns suffice? That's the only official documentation I have showing all my income. Not sure what to provide, and want to make sure I have everything I may need with me when I'm down there next month. I make a lot more than my wife, and her take home income alone might just barely cover the rent with nothing left over, so I expect I'll need some documentation of my income.

Thanks!

[EzPeterson]

Much of it will depend on your credit. Good scores, in a big complex? most likely you won't need anything to establish income.

Shakier credit? the 1040's will work just fine.

[tfwo]

We have very good credit. Looking to rent a house that will run somewhere around $1500-2500/month rent based on what I've seen of listings, with income into 6 figures, if that makes any difference.

Sounds like we should have our IDs of course, my wife should have her W2 and paycheck stubs, and our last couple 1040s. Anything else anyone would recommend based on my situation?

Thanks!

[EzPeterson]

Nah, you'll be fine with what you have - particularly if you are renting through a property management company.

[austin-steve]

Generally, if renting a home managed by a professional property management company, you'll need:

1) Verifiable gross income (paystubs or tax returns) equal or greater than 3 or 4 times the monthly rent. So, for a $2,000/mo rental, you need income of $72K that can be verified.

2) Clean credit. This is subjective. Personally, I require credit scores 650 or higher. Lower scores combined with good rental history and solid income can get by, sometimes with additional deposits though.

3) 2 years good rental history or home ownership payments (shown on credit reports).

4) If you have pets, get all the shots caught up if not already, and be prepared to provide documentation of age, breed, weight via your vet records. Your vet can fax or email this to you. If you have more than 2 pets and/or dog(s) over 35 lbs, you'll have fewer homes to pick from.

5) It's a good idea to have copies or your photo IDs ready also. Most PMs require this with the application.

Leasing a home in Austin can be difficult. The best place to find accurate available listings is AustinHomeSearch.com, which is the public facing Austin MLS for consumers. It's updated almost instantly via MLS feed whereas a lot of the other consumer sites have inaccurate and badly outdated listings.

Good luck,

Steve

[tfwo]

Thanks much!

[Cloveygrl]

I just got a rental house in Hyde Park.

I had to verify last 2 years of employment and salary (asked for last 2 paystubs or last 2 tax returns if self-employed) and had to provide contacts to verify employment and salary (I am not self employed)
I had to verify last 2 years of rental history (or mortgage) which included providing landlords contact and having him fill out a reference form
I had to fill out an application (Texas Association of Realtors Residential Lease Application) which asked questions like my height and weight and hair color...
I had to consent to a background check/credit check
I had to fill out an agreement for application deposit and hold on property along with deposit
I had to provide the deposit money in a certified check with the application (so this money is out of your account while you are going through the process)
I had to send in a scan of my drivers license
I have 2 large (although in Chicago we call them medium but in Austin if its more than 30lbs its large) dogs and submitted a picture which was not requested but was ready to provide vet records

I would also suggest getting a sharp object to stab yourself because getting a rental in Austin is ridiculous.

[austin-steve]

Originally Posted by Cloveygrl

I just got a rental house in Hyde Park.
...
I would also suggest getting a sharp object to stab yourself because getting a rental in Austin is ridiculous.

What part of the screening process did you feel was ridiculous and should have been skipped by the landlord?

Steve

[Cloveygrl]

Originally Posted by austin-steve

What part of the screening process did you feel was ridiculous and should have been skipped by the landlord?

Steve

It required far more effort on my part and more verification than it should. For example, pay stubs should validate employment. Why do you then have to get a form signed off by your employers validating employment and pay? Of course this in itself required a lot of phone calls back and forth to even figure out how this could be done since it required formal processes and pre-authorization by me. Then I had to explain things like why does your global multinational corporation have 800 addresses and none of them match what you put on the application. Then my landlord could not print and fax the "official" form verifying my history and wanted to do it over the phone...took another few days of me trying to figure out options. I also (while I suppose I can understand) did not appreciate the fact the deposit had to be paid in certified funds which means they are sitting on cash before they even decide if you are worthy. I have never ever ever put this kind of effort into renting - it really was more like buying. I understand the market dictates how picky people can be and a Realtor is acting on behalf of someone else so they can't exactly be flexible but that still does not mean I have to like it and I actually cried at one point (which to me seems like things are just a bit out of control).

Renting in Chicago goes something like letting someone know you are interested. Authorizing them to do a background check/credit check which means they call your landlord (maybe), pull a credit check, and ask for paystubs (maybe). If you aren't absolutely terrible then you are approved. Then you sign a lease and pay first months rent and deposit. I have also rented in Seattle, Portland and Milwaukee with the same sort of process which was nowhere near as intense.

As background, I am a highly successful professional female who has been renting the same residence for the last 9 years. The only "horrible" thing about me is the fact I have 2 dogs (which was in this instance an absolute non-issue nor did it make the application process more difficult).

PS Be kind Steve

[Cardiff Giant]

I'm going through this process now renting a house for my in-laws so they can make their transition down here. In a nutshell, it basically amounted to background and credit checks for everyone moving into the home.

The homeowners have another offer so we'll see who they choose.

Good luck OP and welcome to Austin.