Get Approved for a Rental Property

By Jade Guilmartin

As a Property Manager, we are often faced with a lot of choice when choosing a tenant.  We can have up to 10 applications per property!  I have decided to write down some suggestions to help tenants get the approval for the home that they want.
•    Fill out your rental application in FULL.  Nothing frustrates a Property Manager more than having to chase up phone numbers and fax numbers for your references, or to ask you to come back to the office because a section has not been signed or filled in accurately. 
•    Treat the Property Manager with respect.  Ensure that you are polite and accommodating at all times.  Even though it is often the owner who ultimately chooses their favorite applicant, the Property Manager will give advice to that owner.  If you seem difficult to deal with initially then it is likely that the Property Manager will not want to deal with you as a future tenant either.
•    Ensure that you understand how long the application processing process is, and give the Property Manager a reasonable time to process your application before ringing up to see if it is done yet. 
•    Check your affordability.  Most real estate offices work off a 30 or 35% rule.  That is, if the rent is under 35% of your income, then generally it is taken to mean that you can afford the property.  If you have no income, but a large savings, be sure to write this in your application and include a bank statement as proof.
•    Term of the lease - most applications will ask you to write down what term of lease you require, for example 6 or 12 months.  If the term is not important to you, make sure you let your Property Manager know, often Landlords who have more than one application to consider will select the one which is offering the most desirable term.  Some landlords favour long leases, whereas others require a short lease.  If it does not matter to you, state that in your application.
•    Ensure your references are contactable during business hours.  Often tenants put down references and provide a home phone number for them when they are actually full time workers.  Ensure that if your personal references are working full time that they are going to have a mobile on them or that you can supply their work number.  Make sure your references are aware that they are listed as a reference so they are expecting a call.  The main reason it can take a longer time to process applications is that a Property Manager can not get a hold of your references.
Overall, the best way to get your application processed and presented to the Landlord first is to ensure that you are easy to deal with, and have your forms filled out correctly to give your Property Manager the best chance to easily process your application.  Of course, other factors will come in to play, but if you take the advice above it will definitely help.