DPM Rental Criteria
Please review the criteria below before applying for a DPM-managed rental property.
These are DPM’s standard screening criteria. Individual properties may have different or additional lawful requirements when disclosed with the property listing before screening begins.
- Property-Specific Criteria: The criteria below are DPM’s standard screening criteria. Individual properties may have different or additional lawful screening requirements. Any property-specific criteria will be disclosed with the property listing and provided before screening begins. Property-specific criteria will be applied uniformly to applicants for that property. Where a disclosed property-specific criterion differs from DPM’s standard criteria, the property-specific criterion will apply.
- Age Requirements: All proposed occupants age 18 or older must complete a separate rental application.
- Application Accuracy: Applicants must provide complete, truthful, and accurate information. Materially false, misleading, falsified, or intentionally omitted information relevant to the application, screening criteria, occupancy, income, rental history, or tenancy requirements will result in denial when lawfully considered. This includes intentionally failing to disclose proposed occupants or pets when disclosure is required. Innocent or immaterial errors will not by themselves result in denial. Assistance animals are not pets and will be handled in accordance with DPM’s reasonable accommodation process and applicable fair housing law.
- Household Income: Minimum gross household income is 3x the tenant-paid monthly rent, unless a different lawful income requirement is disclosed in the property-specific criteria. All lawful and verifiable sources of income are considered. For applicants receiving a rent voucher or housing subsidy, the verified subsidy is deducted from the monthly rent before applying the applicable income requirement.
- Income / Employment Verification: Applicants relying on employment income must provide at least six (6) months of verifiable employment history, unless beginning new employment and providing a signed offer letter, employment agreement, or other reliable verification of ongoing income. Applicants relying on self-employment, housing assistance, Social Security, retirement, public benefits, or other lawful income must provide documentation verifying the source and amount of the income. DPM may request additional documentation when reasonably necessary to verify qualifying income.
- Credit Score: Applicants must have a minimum credit score of 660 as reported by DPM’s screening provider, unless the individual property’s published screening criteria specify a different minimum score. An applicant who does not meet the applicable credit requirement may qualify with a guarantor who meets DPM’s guarantor requirements, unless otherwise stated in the property-specific criteria.
- No Credit Score: If DPM’s screening provider cannot generate a credit score, the applicant must complete any requested verification. If a score still cannot be generated, DPM may request alternative documentation of payment history, or the applicant may qualify with a qualified guarantor.
- Credit History / Other Debt: DPM will review the applicant’s overall credit history, including payment history, collections, delinquent accounts, and outstanding debt. Verified unpaid collections exceeding $500 or other verified overdue debt totaling more than $1,000 will result in denial when lawfully considered. Rental housing debt is addressed separately above. Medical and student-loan debt will not be used as a basis for denial.
- Guarantors: A guarantor must have a minimum credit score of 700 and gross monthly income of at least 4x the full monthly rent. A qualified guarantor may be permitted when an applicant does not meet the applicable income or credit requirement, unless otherwise stated in the property-specific criteria. The guarantor must independently meet DPM’s guarantor requirements and complete DPM’s application and screening process. A guarantor cannot cure disqualifying rental payment history, outstanding rental debt, eviction history, rental conduct or lease-compliance history, or another disqualifying criterion that lawfully applies independently of income or credit.
- Rental Payment History: Three (3) or more documented instances of the applicant’s required portion of rent being more than five days past due within the most recent 12 months, or two (2) or more returned or NSF rent payments within the most recent 24 months, will result in denial. Delays caused solely by a housing authority, voucher program, or other subsidy provider will not be counted against the applicant.
- Outstanding Rental Debt: Verified unpaid rental housing debt arising from a current or prior tenancy will result in denial when the debt may lawfully be considered. A disputed balance will be reviewed based on the available documentation before a decision is made.
- Rental References / Rental History: Applicants with prior rental history must provide at least 12 months of verifiable rental history and contact information for their current and prior housing providers as needed to verify that period. Rental history must demonstrate satisfactory payment history, care of the property, and compliance with material rental-agreement obligations. If a housing provider does not respond to DPM’s verification request or does not participate in rental verifications, the applicant may be required to provide alternative documentation such as a tenant ledger, rental payment history, lease, written notices, property-management records, civil court records relating to the tenancy, or similar reliable documentation. A housing provider’s failure or refusal to provide a reference will not by itself result in denial. Applicants without at least 12 months of verifiable rental history may qualify with a qualified guarantor or an additional refundable security deposit where permitted by law and within applicable deposit limits. Lack of prior rental history alone will not automatically result in denial.
- Rental Conduct / Lease Compliance: Within the most recent three (3) years, one verified serious lease violation involving substantial tenant-caused property damage or conduct that materially interfered with the health, safety, use, or enjoyment of the property by the housing provider or other residents will result in denial when lawfully considered. Three (3) or more verified lease violations within the same period will also result in denial. Allegations, complaints, or court filings alone will not establish a violation without supporting documentation. For Seattle properties, DPM will not rely on criminal-history information except as permitted by law.
- Eviction History: A verified eviction judgment within the most recent five (5) years will result in denial when the eviction history may lawfully be considered. A current notice to vacate, unlawful detainer action, or other eviction-related filing may be reviewed as part of the applicant’s rental history, but the filing alone will not automatically result in denial. Verified facts underlying the notice or filing may result in denial when they independently meet DPM’s Rental Conduct / Lease Compliance or other published rental-history criteria.
- Criminal History, Where Permitted by Law: For properties where criminal-history screening is permitted, felony convictions within the past seven (7) years involving violence, sexual offenses, arson, burglary, robbery, serious property crimes, or manufacture or distribution of controlled substances will be reviewed and may result in denial when lawfully considered. DPM will consider the nature, severity, recency, and relevance of the offense to the tenancy and property. Arrests that did not result in conviction will not by themselves be grounds for denial. This criterion does not apply in Seattle or any other jurisdiction where such screening is prohibited or restricted by applicable law.
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