Tenant Screening Laws by State: The Landlord’s Compliance Map
Tenant screening runs on federal law — but every state, and many cities, add their own layer. This hub explains the categories of state-level rules every landlord needs to check before setting screening criteria.
Quick Take
Federal law (FCRA and the Fair Housing Act) sets the floor for tenant screening. On top of it, states and cities add rules in predictable categories: source-of-income protection, criminal-history (“fair chance”) limits, eviction-record restrictions, application-fee caps, and credit-use limits. State requirements are almost always additional to federal ones — never substitutes. Always confirm your state and local rules before finalizing screening criteria.
📍 How to Use This Page
This is an overview of the categories of state and local tenant screening law — not a 50-state table. Laws in these areas change frequently, and city ordinances often go further than state law. Use this page to understand what to look for, then confirm the current specifics for your jurisdiction with your state landlord-tenant statutes, your city or county housing department, and a local attorney.
The Two-Layer Structure: Federal Floor, State and Local Additions
Every tenant screening decision in the United States sits on top of two federal laws:
- The Fair Credit Reporting Act — governs how you obtain and act on consumer reports, including authorization and adverse action notices.
- The Fair Housing Act — prohibits discrimination on the basis of seven protected classes.
Those set the national floor. Then states build on top — and within states, cities and counties build further still. The critical principle for landlords: state and local rules are almost always additional requirements, not replacements. Complying with the FCRA does not excuse you from your state’s screening-fee cap; complying with your state law does not excuse you from a stricter city ordinance.
This means a landlord with properties in multiple jurisdictions can’t run one screening policy everywhere. The federal process stays constant; the state and local overlay changes with the property’s location.
Category 1 — Source-of-Income Protection
One of the fastest-growing categories of state and local law. Source-of-income protection means a landlord cannot refuse an applicant solely because their lawful income comes from a particular source — most commonly a Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8), but often also Social Security, disability income, veterans’ benefits, child support, and other lawful non-wage income.
⚠️ Why This Trips Up Landlords
In a jurisdiction with source-of-income protection, you can still verify that income is real, lawful, and sufficient. What you cannot do is reject an applicant because the income is a voucher or a benefit rather than wages. A related trap: applying a flat “3x the full rent” income standard to a voucher holder — who only needs to cover their portion of rent — can itself be a prohibited practice. See the income verification guide.
Over a dozen states and a large number of cities and counties have enacted source-of-income protection, and the list grows regularly. This is a category where city law frequently exists even when state law doesn’t — always check the local level.
Category 2 — Criminal History and “Fair Chance” Rules
The use of criminal history in tenant screening is regulated at the federal level by Fair Housing Act disparate-impact guidance — but a growing number of states and cities have enacted specific “fair chance housing” laws that go further.
These laws vary widely, but commonly include some combination of:
- Timing limits — barring a criminal-history inquiry until after a conditional offer, or until later in the screening process
- Lookback limits — restricting how far back you may consider convictions
- Individualized assessment requirements — requiring you to weigh the nature, age, and relevance of an offense rather than applying a blanket ban
- Exclusion of certain records — arrests not leading to conviction, sealed or expunged records, juvenile records
- Notice and appeal rights — requiring you to tell the applicant what record drove the decision and give them a chance to respond
⚠️ Blanket Criminal Bans Are High-Risk
A flat “no one with any criminal record” policy is one of the most legally exposed positions a landlord can take — it invites disparate-impact liability under federal fair housing guidance even before any state fair-chance law applies. Where fair-chance laws exist, blanket bans are often directly prohibited. Individualized assessment is the defensible approach.
Category 3 — Eviction Record Restrictions
Eviction filings are a standard part of tenant screening reports — but a number of states and cities now restrict how those records may be used.
Common restrictions in this category:
- Lookback limits — barring consideration of eviction filings older than a set number of years
- Filing-vs-judgment distinction — restricting use of eviction filings that did not result in a judgment against the tenant, or that were dismissed or settled
- Sealed-record rules — some jurisdictions seal certain eviction records, making them unavailable for screening
- Pandemic-era protections — several jurisdictions enacted lasting rules around evictions filed during specific periods
The underlying concern these laws address: an eviction filing is not the same as a tenant who did something wrong. Cases are filed and then dismissed, settled, or decided for the tenant. Jurisdictions with these rules require landlords to look at the outcome and the age of the record, not just its existence.
Category 4 — Application Fee Caps and Screening Fee Rules
Many states regulate what a landlord may charge an applicant for screening, and what must happen to that money.
Fee Caps
Some states cap the application/screening fee at a fixed dollar amount, or limit it to the landlord’s actual out-of-pocket screening cost.
Actual-Cost Rules
Some require the fee to reflect the genuine cost of screening — not a profit center — with any excess refunded.
Receipt & Disclosure
Some require an itemized receipt, disclosure of the screening company used, or a copy of the report to the applicant.
Refund Rules
Some require refunding the fee if the unit is filled before the applicant is screened, or if screening doesn’t occur.
✅ Why Applicant-Paid Screening Simplifies This
When the applicant pays the screening company directly for their own report, much of the fee-handling complexity is reduced — the landlord isn’t collecting, holding, and accounting for screening money. It doesn’t eliminate the need to know your state’s rules, but it removes a common source of fee-handling violations.
Category 5 — Credit Information Use Limits
Credit-based screening is lawful under federal law, but a growing number of jurisdictions place limits on how credit information may be used in housing decisions.
Rules in this category can include:
- Restrictions or prohibitions on using credit scores for applicants who use housing assistance
- Requirements to consider credit information “in context” rather than applying a hard cutoff
- Requirements to let applicants provide explanatory information about negative credit items
- Interaction with source-of-income protection — a credit standard can’t be used as an indirect way to screen out voucher holders where source-of-income is protected
For the underlying principles of credit-based screening — and why the full report matters more than the score — see the minimum credit score guide.
Category 6 — Required Disclosures and Notices
Beyond the federal FCRA adverse action notice, many states impose their own disclosure and notice obligations in the screening process. These can include:
- Screening criteria disclosure — some states require landlords to give applicants the screening criteria in advance
- State-specific adverse action content — additional information beyond the federal four elements
- Report-copy rights — some states require providing the applicant a copy of the screening report
- Reusable report acceptance — some jurisdictions require landlords to accept a recent screening report the applicant already paid for, rather than requiring a new one
- Notice of rights — state-specific statements of applicant rights
📋 The Practical Takeaway
Your adverse action notice template should be reviewed against your specific state’s requirements — the federal four elements may not be the whole list where you operate.
How to Build a Compliant Multi-Jurisdiction Process
If you operate in more than one state — or even more than one city — the goal is a process that stays consistent in its structure while correctly applying each location’s overlay.
- Build your core process on the federal floor — FCRA authorization, consistent criteria, adverse action notices
- For each jurisdiction, research the six categories above: source-of-income, criminal history, eviction records, fee caps, credit limits, disclosures
- Check city and county law, not just state — local ordinances frequently go further
- Maintain a written screening policy per jurisdiction — same structure, location-specific overlay
- Use the same screening company and report type everywhere for consistency of data
- Review your policies at least annually — these laws change frequently
- Have a local attorney review your screening policy for each state you operate in
- Train anyone who screens on the specific jurisdiction’s rules, not just the general process
The federal framework — consistent criteria, proper authorization, adverse action notices, documentation — is what makes any screening process defensible. The state and local overlay is what keeps it lawful in your specific location. You need both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do federal screening laws or state screening laws control?
Both — they layer. The FCRA and Fair Housing Act set the national floor. State and local laws add requirements on top. State and local rules are almost always additional, not substitutes: complying with federal law doesn’t excuse you from a state fee cap, and complying with state law doesn’t excuse you from a stricter city ordinance. You must satisfy all applicable layers.
What is source-of-income protection?
It’s a state or local law prohibiting landlords from refusing an applicant solely because their lawful income comes from a particular source — most often a Section 8 voucher, but frequently also Social Security, disability, veterans’ benefits, or child support. You can still verify income is real and sufficient; you just can’t reject it for being non-wage income. Over a dozen states and many cities have these laws.
Can I refuse to rent to anyone with a criminal record?
A blanket ‘no criminal record’ policy is one of the most legally exposed positions a landlord can take. Federal fair housing guidance treats blanket bans as creating disparate-impact liability, and many states and cities have ‘fair chance housing’ laws that directly restrict or prohibit them. The defensible approach is individualized assessment — weighing the nature, age, and relevance of a specific offense.
Are there limits on using eviction records in screening?
In a growing number of states and cities, yes. Common restrictions include lookback limits (no filings older than a set number of years), distinctions between eviction filings and actual judgments (restricting use of dismissed or settled cases), and sealed-record rules. The principle: an eviction filing isn’t proof the tenant did something wrong — outcome and age matter.
How much can I charge for a rental application fee?
It depends on your state. Many states cap the screening fee at a fixed amount or limit it to the landlord’s actual screening cost; some require itemized receipts or refunds in certain circumstances. Applicant-paid screening — where the applicant pays the screening company directly — reduces much of this fee-handling complexity, but you still need to know your state’s rules.
Do I have to give applicants my screening criteria?
In some states, yes — they require landlords to disclose screening criteria to applicants, sometimes in advance. Some states also require providing a copy of the screening report, accepting a recent reusable report the applicant already paid for, or including state-specific content in adverse action notices. Check your specific state’s disclosure requirements.
I have properties in several states — do I need a different screening process for each?
Your core process should stay consistent — built on the federal floor of FCRA authorization, consistent written criteria, and adverse action notices. What changes per jurisdiction is the overlay: source-of-income rules, fair-chance criminal limits, eviction-record restrictions, fee caps, credit-use limits, and disclosure requirements. Maintain a written screening policy per jurisdiction — same structure, location-specific overlay — and have a local attorney review each.
Screen Consistently Across Every Jurisdiction
Our screening reports give you the same complete, compliant data set wherever your properties are — so your process stays consistent while you apply the state-specific rules that fit each location.
Published by Tenant Screening Background Check
Established 2004 · 20+ Years · All U.S. States & Territories · Statute-Based · Attorney-Reviewed
A Private Eye Reports™ service trusted by landlords, property managers, and attorneys.
⚖️ Legal Disclaimer
This page provides a general overview of the categories of state and local tenant screening law as of . It is not a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction legal reference. Tenant screening laws — particularly source-of-income, fair-chance criminal history, and eviction-record rules — change frequently, and city and county ordinances often impose stricter requirements than state law. This is not legal advice. Confirm the current rules for your specific jurisdiction with your state landlord-tenant statutes, your local housing authority, and a licensed attorney in your area.
