So, it's been ten years since I actually rented a place. I've had this travel gig for a decade now, but now I'm thinking I'll settle down for a year or so until the job market picks back up. The companies have cut benefits so much that right now, it makes more sense for me to stay put.
Anyway, I found a place I liked and brought home the reference/application form. It seems damn intrusive. It's been a long time, but I don't recall the process being more than pulling a credit report, proof of income, and listing past addresses. In addition to all that, this company is asking for my bank and checking account numbers, my drivers license number, automobiles and thier license numbers as well as make/model/color, etc. and extensive work history with supervisor names and all that jazz. This just seems overly intrusive to me. Have things changed that much?
jbubble and I just did the same thing and they asked all the same questions. I guess it is all standard now.
but I do agree that it is a bit much.
a colonoscopy would have been less invasive
some legal type on here pro'lly has some perfectly legit reasons why it is necessary
They didn't ask that many questions when I bought my house.
Times change. :-\
Yup, it was a bit much but remember you'll be giving up the bank info with any check you give them anyways.
I didn't have to give up that info a couple years ago when I rented here in Charlotte but I guess its on there now. :-\
If you fill out the stuff in person you can ask them which parts are really necessary. They don't actually NEED all of it.
The car info is likely for parking enforcement. Some places do resident only parking or assigned spot parking and it's to prove that you're where you are allowed to be.
They are protecting the downside if you miss your rent payments, as eviction is costly and time consuming for the rental agency.
As the times worsen, so does the income of rental units, therefore, by performing such checks they are making sure you are truthful in your statements and can afford to make rent each month.
They asked me all of that stuff.
I sat down and explained I would provide previous addresses, proof of income, personal info, and moto license plate number. Other than that, no bank info, drivers license info, supervisors name etc.
They were okay with it.
Quote from: MrIncredible on April 26, 2009, 09:49:13 AM
They asked me all of that stuff.
Like they're gonna get any info from your super. [laugh]
If I rented out my condo, I would also include a background check on that form.
We hadn't rented in awhile but when we started our movement from AZ a couple years ago..all three places we've rented from have asked for the same info..plus shot records on the pet(s). I agree..they want a ton of info! I'm surpised they didn't ask for our birth certificates!
CB mentioned tough times right now..in regards to that. We broke our lease early in FL. We gave them 60 days notice so all they did was keep our deposit. The place here in TX..OTOH..wanted to charge us about $4000.00 to break this lease!! :o :o They don't want empty apts and right now..they have a few. The place is pretty full though with families that have either lost their homes in a another state or here. :-\
I have only rented one apartment in my life and I signed the lease in the late fall of 2003 for occupancy beginning Jan 2 2004.
They required all that information and the complex was at 95% occupancy.
If I would have broke my lease, I would have owed them about 3400$
Quote from: cyrus buelton on April 26, 2009, 02:30:56 PM
I have only rented one apartment in my life and I signed the lease in the late fall of 2003 for occupancy beginning Jan 2 2004.
They required all that information and the complex was at 95% occupancy.
If I would have broke my lease, I would have owed them about 3400$
We broke our lease in Flagstaff back in '95. 30 days notice..had to pay 1/2 a month's rent ($400) and lost security deposit ($250). Wasn't too bad when I look back but we had just gotten married and that was a lot of money to lose at the time. We made it all back though renting the next place since it was a house AND it was cheaper rent!
I guess it all depends on where you rent and what the contract says.
a lot of the lease break fees center around what sort of "deal" you got when you moved in.
I got 2 free months, so I would have had to pay that back along with losing my security deposit.
Ok, well I guess I'll just ask and see how little I can get away with giving them. Sounds like times have changed, though. I pretty much get the colonoscopy bit to work as a nurse anyway. I have had more background checks than I can recall, and I've been fingerprinted more times than a petty criminal.
My job requires me to get fingerprinted every 5 years. I guess that's so if my prints should happen to change or something... [bang]
Quote from: cyrus buelton on April 26, 2009, 03:05:33 PM
a lot of the lease break fees center around what sort of "deal" you got when you moved in.
I got 2 free months, so I would have had to pay that back along with losing my security deposit.
Yup! That's the case with the current apt and why it's so much to break it.
Quote from: redxblack on April 26, 2009, 05:00:10 PM
My job requires me to get fingerprinted every 5 years. I guess that's so if my prints should happen to change or something... [bang]
hahahahahahahahahahahaha breath hahahahahahahaahahahahahahahahh
Yeah, I'd have a hard time giving up that info. Nowadays, I am worried about whoever has that information protecting it. Unless they can assure me that the info will be on lockdown, I don't want to hand over my bank account info to the future pissed off ex-employees of their organization.
May not apply in this case, but a source of really good info for Texas apartment tenants:
http://www.texastenant.org/index.html (http://www.texastenant.org/index.html)
Thanks for the link, but this is CA.
Quote from: Nitewaif on April 26, 2009, 05:43:34 AM
So, it's been ten years since I actually rented a place. I've had this travel gig for a decade now, but now I'm thinking I'll settle down for a year or so until the job market picks back up. The companies have cut benefits so much that right now, it makes more sense for me to stay put.
Anyway, I found a place I liked and brought home the reference/application form. It seems damn intrusive. It's been a long time, but I don't recall the process being more than pulling a credit report, proof of income, and listing past addresses. In addition to all that, this company is asking for my bank and checking account numbers, my drivers license number, automobiles and thier license numbers as well as make/model/color, etc. and extensive work history with supervisor names and all that jazz. This just seems overly intrusive to me. Have things changed that much?
I manage my apartment complex here in Vancouver Washington. I know you're in Cali, but maybe this will help anyways. They want your work history to see how long you can hold a job and if you will be out of work quickly (and thus unable to make rent). I don't generally ask about this, only how long they have been on the job where they work presently, and if it hasn't been for long then I ask a few more questions.
Giving them your bank information is Bulls**t, if they run a background check (which they should) they will get anough about your bill-paying history and credit that they won't need your bank info. I say don't give it. Sometimes our applicants don't and it really doesn't matter in the end. If you aren't comfortable giving it out then don't.
As for your social security number, they need that for a background/credit chack and NOTHING ELSE!!! If they aren't doing one, they don't need it. If they are, then you are going to have to cough it up. If they want your liscense number ALSO, that is again bulls**t. The Soc. number is good enough.
The vehicle stuff is for your eventual file so that they can learn quickly what vehicle is yours and they don't tow it. TRUST ME towing is fun. Sorry to say this but a certain amount of vengful glee is found in having someone's car towed. (Maybe this was because they tried to pick a fight in my parking lot and then tried to run me over twice in a row, oh wait and then left their car there for ten hours the next day after being ordered never to come on the property again. Oh yeah and they didn't live there either.)
Sorry, that became a rant. I hope some of this was actually useful.
The Doc
The one that got me, was that in our lease we not only had to state how many dogs we had and the breeds (understandable)... But their sex, age, weight and name. I'm surprised they didn't ask for their bank account numbers too :]
Quote from: Doctor Woodrow on April 28, 2009, 12:19:47 PM
I manage my apartment complex here in Vancouver Washington......
Sorry, that became a rant. I hope some of this was actually useful.
The Doc
Thanks, Doc. Rant away, we all work with idiots. There are too many in the world to avoid them all.
I finalized the paperwork today. No, I didn't give them my banking numbers, just the other information. The parking is a private garage spot (with key), so they didn't really need my car information either. I got by with a credit check and I showed them last year's tax forms to prove income. I took a folder of stuff I would allow them to view but not keep or copy, and that worked out just fine.
It's insane, though. They (until recently) required less information to buy a house!
Quote from: Nitewaif on April 28, 2009, 08:22:55 PM
Thanks, Doc. Rant away, we all work with idiots. There are too many in the world to avoid them all.
I finalized the paperwork today. No, I didn't give them my banking numbers, just the other information. The parking is a private garage spot (with key), so they didn't really need my car information either. I got by with a credit check and I showed them last year's tax forms to prove income. I took a folder of stuff I would allow them to view but not keep or copy, and that worked out just fine.
It's insane, though. They (until recently) required less information to buy a house!
two things
you gots an indiana?
and
Cali?
we are going to miss you come halloween
the band just wont be the same
Quote from: Nitewaif on April 28, 2009, 08:22:55 PM
It's insane, though. They (until recently) required less information to buy a house!
It's still easier for a bank to forclose on a house than it is to kick non-paying renters out in many states. The mortgage lenders have the house as collateral, the property owner renting space is different. Bad tenants can be a very awefull thing...you're seeing more info requested because frankly, landlords
can.
Glad it worked out.
Quote from: Mother on April 28, 2009, 08:24:54 PM
two things
you gots an indiana?
and
Cali?
we are going to miss you come halloween
the band just wont be the same
Yup, I gots an Indiana. It handles surprisingly well, not like a cruiser at all. It sits kinda high, though.
And yup, Cali. The travel market is drying up with the rest of the economy. Because I have been so many places over the years, I wasn't having any trouble finding a job, but the pay has dropped to the point where I could do better waiting tables, and because jobs are so scarce, the hospitals aren't granting requested time off any more. The companies are nickel-and-diming the travelers so much that I decided to take a break.
Cali wasn't my first choice, but after making a few phone calls, I realized that if I just stayed put in SF for a year, I could save more than if I went most anywhere else. I did look at Portland (it was my first choice) but their funding has dried up so much that the staff nurses aren't getting all their hours. Plus rents their have not fallen as drastically there as they have in California. I am still paying more for a very small place here than I would pay for a mansion back home, though. :P
My plan is to stay put for a year and maybe figure out what I want to be when I grow up. Then I'll either go back to school or hit the road again.
Quote from: kristan696 on April 28, 2009, 12:24:53 PM
The one that got me, was that in our lease we not only had to state how many dogs we had and the breeds (understandable)... But their sex, age, weight and name. I'm surprised they didn't ask for their bank account numbers too :]
That seems pretty standard from what I have seen around here.
Did you also have to furnish proof of vaccinations?
Quote from: Nitewaif on April 29, 2009, 10:02:42 AM
Cali wasn't my first choice, but after making a few phone calls, I realized that if I just stayed put in SF for a year, I could save more than if I went most anywhere else.
You should pop into a zeit night now and again.
Quote from: MrIncredible on April 29, 2009, 11:52:59 AM
You should pop into a zeit night now and again.
Is that the west coast equivalent of the Blue Oyster Bar?
Quote from: cyrus buelton on April 29, 2009, 11:58:20 AM
Is that the west coast equivalent of the Blue Oyster Bar?
Nah-local SF monster people get together once a month.
Zeitgeist
Fast
Friendly
Service
(pick one)
Quote from: MrIncredible on April 29, 2009, 12:07:53 PM
Nah-local SF monster people get together once a month.
http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=22670.0 (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=22670.0)
Quote from: MrIncredible on April 29, 2009, 12:07:53 PM
Nah-local SF monster people get together once a month.
Zeitgeist
Fast
Friendly
Service
(pick one)
Right. A biker bar.
What went on there?
"Dancing sir. Mostly dancing."
[laugh] [laugh] [laugh]
Quote from: Statler on April 29, 2009, 07:45:42 AM
It's still easier for a bank to forclose on a house than it is to kick non-paying renters out in many states.
Glencoe Hills Apts..Ann Arbor ;)
We saw (ex) tenants entire furnishings and possessions on the side of the road many-a-time!
Quote from: IZ on April 26, 2009, 02:00:18 PM
... The place here in TX..OTOH..wanted to charge us about $4000.00 to break this lease!! :o :o They don't want empty apts and right now..they have a few ...
Could you sublet the place to cover the remainder of the lease?
It is/was very common to do so in NYC, although it's more for reasons of locking in the rent control than it was to break a lease.