If you have ever leased an apartment, house, or storefront, you
have probably agreed to a background check or asked the applicant
to do so. What you may not know is that the process of looking into
someone's background is regulated by state, local, and federal
law. Here are five points any landlord, tenant, or screening agency
should know about tenant screening laws.
Federal law provides baseline protections for tenancy
applicants.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act ("FCRA") requires that
applicants both authorize screening and receive notice before any
adverse action is taken based on the report. However, unlike for
employment screening, tenant screeners are not required to provide
an independent disclosure or a pre-adverse action notice. The
Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act also requires an
authorization by the applicant, but those authorizations are
usually subsumed within FCRA requirements. Additionally, the FCRA
limits how long various items can remain
