Rental Application Instructions

One Focus Property Management does business in accordance with the Federal, state, and local Fair Housing laws and welcome persons of all race, color, disability, religious creed, ancestry, sex, familial status, sexual preference, gender identity, age, and national origin. We selected the most qualified tenant based on the stated criteria.

Each application requires we verify credit history, leasing history, income, and criminal reports. Factors such as your move in date, pets, and your behavior and cooperation with our staff may also be considered in the application decision.

We encourage you to review our LEASE prior to applying for a property. This lease is not negotiable.

To apply for a rental, please go to our Rental Listings, select the unit you want to apply for, and then click the Apply Now button on the listing.

IN ORDER TO PROCESS YOUR APPLICATION, WE NEED YOU TO PROVIDE US THE FOLLOWING 4 ITEMS:

  1. Completed application – We must have a separate completed application for anyone 18+ years old that will be living at the property. Please make sure to complete all fields as we only process fully completed applications.
  2. A copy of a state issued photo ID (e.g. driver’s license, passport, military ID).
  3. Proof of income for all applicants – Applicants must provide verification of legal income sufficient to meet the rent-to-income ratio. Examples of verification include, but are not limited to, last two paycheck stubs, payroll report from employer for at least the two most recent pay periods, current proof of government income (such as Social Security, disability, welfare, etc.), proof of retirement income, liquid assets (e.g. savings/bank account, stocks), proof of spousal and/or child support, or any other legal verifiable income. Verification of more than two pay periods may be required if the income is not consistent. If the applicant is hired but has not received a paystub yet, a written letter of hire from employer detailing wage/salary, position, and start date is required. Self-employed applicants must provide a copy of the previous year’s tax return in Q1 or Q2 of the year. In Q3 and Q4, applicants must also provide documentation of the current year’s financial performance in addition to last year’s tax return. Gross income is calculated as total income before taxes less child/spousal support, debt service, payroll garnishments for loans, taxes, child/spousal support, etc. Tax-free income is divided by .85 to account for the difference in taxed and non-taxed income such as social security, disability, or state support.
  4. $65 non-refundable screening fee per application. PLEASE NOTE: Since we incur costs to process and screen each application, application fees are non-refundable.

APPLICATION POLICIES

  • You must be willing to start the lease within 30 days of applying if the property is vacant at the time of application. If the property is not available until a future date, you must be willing to start a lease within 21 days of the availability date. Please check with our team if this is a concern.
  • A complete application package includes all four items listed above. Only fully completed application packages will be processed. An incomplete application package will not be considered. Please attach all documents to your online application.
  • Our application process generally takes 3-5 business days from the day you provide us a complete application and all required documents. If there are multiple applicants, it can sometimes take longer, but our goal is to get you a decision within 3-5 business days. We make no guarantee as to the time it will take to process your application. The time required varies based on the responsiveness of your landlords and employers and other business demands.
  • We must verify your rental references, so please make sure to provide working phone numbers for your current and previous landlords. When possible, it is a good idea to let them know we will be calling in advance. If you cannot provide contact information for your former landlords, we cannot consider that history, and your application score may be affected.
  • There are times when a company would like to rent a property in the company name. In those instances, we will require an individual to also be on the lease as a responsible party, either as an occupant lease holder or co-signer. This may be a principal of the company or the employee who is living at the property. The person who is responsible for the lease must qualify by our conventional scoring criteria. For occupant/non-leaseholders we require a criminal background check as part of the application.
  • Be honest and truthful in your application and answer all questions. Any falsification of facts or withholding of information requested on the application is cause for denial. If the falsification of facts is revealed after a lease has been signed, this is a reasonable cause for eviction.
  • If you have not seen the property, your application may be subordinated to other applicants who have seen the property. We strongly encourage you to view the property prior to applying.
  • Please note, if your application is approved, One Focus Property Management needs a minimum of 1-2 business days to prepare the property prior to your move in.
  • Pets – Please check the advertisement on www.onefocuspm.com to confirm if pets will be considered, and what the number, type, and weight restrictions are. Your application may be subordinated to other applications if other applicants do not have pets. You must submit pet applications at https://onefocuspm.petscreening.com/. No pets will be considered without a pet application. PetScreener.com fees apply. You must submit current vaccination records, photos, and your tenant insurance policy number in order to have your animal considered. The information you submit to Petscreening.com will provide a score of 1 through 5 Paws. Animals meeting a minimum score of 3 out of 5, with all documents uploaded and meeting the weight and type restrictions, will be approved.

APPLICATION SCORING- CONVENTIONAL

CREDIT

  • 0. 775+ Experian™ Resident score
  • 1. 701–774 Experian™ Resident score
  • 2. 650–700 Experian™ Resident score
  • 3. No credit or 625–649 Experian™ Resident score
  • 4. 600–624 Experian™ Resident score

*A minimum credit score of 600 is required., if there is more than one applicant only the income of the applicant(s) with a 600 and above Experian score will be scored.

*If an applicant does not have an Experian™ credit score, and if their application is approved, they will be required to pay an additional security deposit of ½ months’ rent or $500.00 whichever is greater.

Income Ratio (This is a household measurement, all applicants’ income is combined for scoring)

  • 0 – Verifiable income 4.5 times the monthly rental rate OR assets in bank accounts and investment accounts total six times the totaling rent for the lease term.
  • 1 – Verifiable income 3.5–4.49 times the monthly rental rate OR assets in bank accounts and investment accounts total four and a half times the totaling rent for the lease term.
  • 2 – Verifiable income 3–3.49 times the monthly rental rate.
  • 3 – Verifiable income 2.5–2.99 times the monthly rental rate. *A minimum monthly income required is 2.5 times the monthly rental rate.

** All verified income is rounded to the nearest whole percent. Temporary, Temp. to Hire agencies, or seasonal income WILL NOT be considered. Income without sufficient documentation (e.g., pay stubs, statements, letter of hire) will not be considered. If the applicant is starting a new job, paystubs are not necessary but a letter of hire detailing wage, start date, and position will serve as the documentation.

Non-Court Ordered Support:

With verification including proven receipt of funds and a notarized statement, we will count the lesser amount of support OR 20% of the application income. (Example- If the application income is $4,000/month and the notarized statement states that the support is $1,000/month, we will only count $800 toward the monthly income because it is the lesser of the two amounts.)

Court-Ordered Support:

There is no limit to the amount of child support counted if it is verified as court-ordered. If a court order states that the applicant is receiving $1,000/month in income, all $1,000 will be counted because it is court-ordered.

Landlord History

  • 0 - No late payments, no lease violations, full refund of their security deposit.
  • 1 - No landlord history OR no more than 1 late payment in the past 12 months and mild move-out charges covered by the security deposit.
  • 2 - No more than 2 late payments in the past 12 months, move-out charges over the security deposit and have been satisfied.

* Three years of address history must be verifiable. Lack of verifiable address history may result in application denial at the discretion of One Focus Property Management.

**Your application is automatically denied if you have an unsatisfied Landlord/Tenant Judgment, eviction record in the past seven (7) years, Negative Landlord Reference regarding property damage or outstanding balance due, outstanding Landlord Collection or Judgment, or Mortgage is currently past due

*** When a full-time student and non-students wish to reside together, each person must fill out the appropriate/separate application. The non-students must complete the residential application. The non-student must meet the requirements listed on the residential application. The non-student rent-to-income ratio will be calculated using a percentage of the rent (For example, if two people reside in the unit, the ratio will be calculated using one-half of the rent to calculate the ratio) Approval of the application as a whole will be at the discretion of One Focus Property Management.

**** When an applicant presents child support as a source of income, we need to be able to verify the income to consider it part of the application income. Acceptable forms of proof are copies of court-ordered support.

Court-Ordered Support: There is no limit to the amount of child support/Alimony counted if it is verified as court-ordered. Non-Court-Ordered Support: Applicant must submit a notarized statement from the source of the income statement the amount of the weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly support payment, the length of the payment arrangement, and provide at least the last 2 months of payment history. We will count the lesser amount of support OR 20% of the applicant's income. (Example: If the applicant's income is $4,000/month and the notarized statement states that the support is $1,000/ month, we will only count $800 toward the monthly income because it is the lesser of the two amounts.)

CRIMINAL HISTORY

Criminal history is given an individual assessment and is either considered qualified or unqualified based on those facts separate from the scoring of financial matters. To fully consider your criminal history, please provide any information you feel is necessary to understand the context of your convictions. Examples of information you may want to provide for consideration include the circumstances surrounding the criminal conduct, your age at the time of the conduct, and evidence of rehabilitation. As we evaluate an applicant’s criminal history, special attention is paid to violent and sexual offenses. We base our decisions related to criminal history on our business concern for the safety of other residents and our staff. Only convictions are considered; arrests without conviction are not considered when evaluating an application. Convictions for the manufacture and distribution of illegal drugs (within the past 10 years) will result in application denial.

SCORING DECISION

≤ 6 = approved with a one-month security deposit

7 = high risk, if no more than one category is scored at the highest possible score then a co-signer or higher deposit may be considered. Co-signers live in the United States AND must have a minimum 650 credit score. Whether a higher deposit or co-signer (or both) is required is at the discretion of One Focus Property Management.

8 or higher = Declined

If you are applying with multiple people, we the average scores of each individual to get a score for the whole application. If your application score is not a whole number, it will be rounded to the next whole number (E.g., if the average score is 3.33, then the score is rounded to 4).

If we receive more than one application for the same property with the same application score, we will pick the application with the highest Experian™ Resident Score (average of all applicants). If that is the same, we will pick the application with the earliest move-in date.

FULL TIME COLLEGE STUDENTS (ENROLLED FULL TIME)

Off Campus Housing Application

If you are a full-time student, it is very likely that you cannot qualify to rent a property because of your limited income and little or no credit and rental history. To accommodate the needs of our full-time student applicants, we have developed the following guidelines for application approval. Our student applicants should restrict their search the student rental sections of our website. Those properties are owned by our clients who are prepared to accept student renters with co-signers.

Co-signers are required for full-time students. Co-signers must be living in the United States, are preferably closely related to the student applicant, and must be willing to sign the lease agreeing to bear the financial responsibility of the lease, including property damage, without being permitted to reside at the property. Special exceptions may be made for international students to allow them to rent a property without a co-signer if they pay a double deposit.

Please note: You may be a full-time student and want to rent a property without a co-signer or a property that isn’t on our student rental sections of the website. This is possible, but in that case, you would have to apply and qualify on the conventional scoring standards. You must complete a full rental application, provide those documents, and pay the fees.

If you are renting with roommates on a joint and several lease (please ask your leasing agent about whether the property you are interested in requires a joint and several lease or individual room lease), then all roommates must have co-signers or all qualify without co-signers.

If you intend to rent with roommates, but some of your roommates are not full-time students, then you need to discuss this with the Director of Property Management to determine your application process. This process can vary depending on the property, who it is owned by, and the nature of your application.

We encourage you to review our lease prior to applying for a property. This lease is not negotiable. In order to process your application, we need you to provide us the following two items:

  1. Completed Student Application - We must have a separate completed application for anyone 18+ years old that will be living at the property. Please make sure to complete all fields as we only process fully completed applications. A completed application is required of your co-signer. All information requested on the student application is required including dates of birth and social security numbers. DO NOT SUBMIT AN APPLICATION WITHOUT THIS INFORMATION.
  2. A copy of a state issued photo ID. e.g. driver’s license, passport, military ID for each applicant and co-signer.
  3. Proof of student status.
  4. A copy of the co-signers credit report showing a score of 600 or greater.

CRIMINAL HISTORY

Criminal history is given an individual assessment and is either considered qualified or unqualified based on those facts separate from the scoring of financial matters. In order to fully consider your criminal history, please provide any information you feel is necessary to understand the context of your convictions. Examples of information you may want to provide for consideration include the circumstances surrounding the criminal conduct, your age at the time of the conduct and evidence of rehabilitation. As we evaluate an applicant’s criminal history, special attention is paid to violent and sexual offenses. We base our decisions related to criminal history on our business concern for the safety of other residents and our staff. Only convictions are considered, arrests without conviction are not considered when evaluating an application. Convictions for the manufacture and distribution of illegal drugs (Within the past 10 years) will result in application denial.