Arkansas Rental Application Form (PDF & Word Download)

When a prospective tenant becomes interested in an Arkansas rental property, the natural step is to indicate the desire to the property owner or landlord. A rental application is the way to do this.

As a landlord, Arkansas rental applications help to collect essential insights on potential renters. Going this route helps to ensure that the best possible tenant is selected.

The process may include a background check on criminal history, credit, eviction records, etc. We've put together some invaluable information to help you understand what goes into the Arkansas rental application process.

Arkansas Rental Applications

Not every rental application is the same. As is often the case in the United States, Arkansas is home to two different types of applications. The form that a prospective tenant will use depends on the lease agreement to be used, as well as the property type and relevant statutes.

General Rental Application Form

Most tenants will use this rental application form. While there is a standard variation that an Arkansas landlord may wish to use, the process also supports customization, which allows for data collection that may be better suited to the unique needs of a property.

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Rental Property Application

A landlord dealing with a low-income tenant or one offering Section 8 Housing will use this document. It is customized to capture information that aligns with rules governing subsidized housing.

Arkansas Rental Application Form

Tenant applications are often thought to be allowed freedom in the information that they can collect from potential renters. However, this is not the case. Some of the examples of the allowed components of the rental application are:

• Personal information of every tenant that will live in the house
• Written consent for credit history checks
• Written consent for background checks
• Financial information (e.g. income)
• Personal references
• Employment details

What Not To Include

On the flip side, there are some nuggets of information that the Arkansas rental application process is not allowed to collect from potential tenants. These include:

• Familial status
• Disabilities
• Sex
• Religion
• Age
• Nationality
• Color
• Race

Drafting Rental Applications

In working to develop an Arkansas rental application, it's non-negotiable to ensure that the document is compliant with legal requirements before passing it to a possible tenant. A failure to do so can create costly consequences. Bear the following in mind.

Security Deposit

Arkansas has two tiers of security deposit charges depending on your ownership status. If a landlord is to collectively own five properties or less, there is no cap placed on security deposits. However, should a landlord cross the threshold of five, then, under the law (§ 18-16-304 and § 18-16-303), it becomes illegal to charge more than two months' rent for the security deposit.

Background Checks and Credit Check Consent

According to the Federal Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), before landlords can proceed to carry out a credit check on any applicant, consent must be given to do so.

While it is possible for a tenant hopeful to provide the information separately, landlords will often provide an area on the rental application with a pre-written statement that speaks to consent being given for the credit history check.

An applicant can simply provide a signature, which is enough to indicate permission being received.

Eligibility Notice

Should any screening criteria potentially affect the chances of an applicant, landlords must disclose information about it. The idea is to ensure that those who submit rental applications can pinpoint what may be the reason for acceptance or denial.

The applicant must provide a signature of acknowledgment. This not only shows that the person read the points of information, but it is also a statement of acceptance.

Housing Discrimination Protection

This is where the Fair Housing Act comes into the process. This is a federal-based piece of litigation that expressly prevents landlords from rejecting the application of anyone for discriminatory reasons.

This policy hearkens back to the areas not allowed to be on the form such as familial status, sex, race, disability status, etc. Technically speaking, criminal history discrimination is also not allowed. You must abide by the rule even if you discover a criminal record during the background check process.

Application Fee

There will usually be a non-refundable application fee synonymous with the document used to start the application process.

Federal law doesn't directly speak to what this figure should be. Additionally, there's no state law to provide direction.

Therefore, landlords could theoretically make the fee whatever they may desire. Since the charge is meant to help cover the process of screening possible tenants, it's recommended to set a figure that is most conducive to the process. For example, your background checks to discover rental history or criminal history come at a cost you must bear.

Eviction Records

Rental history tends to be a big part of the process. A concerning pattern of eviction records, for example, is an indication that a tenant may be less than optimal.

Thankfully, Arkansas evictions are public record. You can use CourtConnect to access them or you can rely on a third-party business or piece of software.

Adverse Action Notice

Though you cannot discriminate against applicants for highlighted reasons, you can take the adverse action notice route to either reject the application, require a higher rent, ask for a co-signer, or increase the deposit.

The process would involve providing a notice document to prospective tenants with the details of the matter, regardless of if the report's details are not primarily responsible for the decision.

Build Your Own

After the review of the application document is complete and a landlord decided to enter into a contract with someone as a renter, a lease agreement will be required. You can access this in MS Word or PDF variations.

Alternatively, if the pre-defined details are not extensive enough, you can build your own document instead!

The Bottom Line

The application process to secure housing in Arkansas comes with several nuances and caveats. Property owners must bear the relevant policies in mind, to remain compliant with the applicable statutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are Some Main Reasons to Draft an Arkansas Rental Application Form?

Setting up the document adequately allows for the following:

• Gathering information on prospects
• Screening applicants becomes a more informed procedure
• Tailoring can be done to get nuanced details

Are There Any Situations That Would Allow Exceptions to the Federal Fair Housing Act?

Yes. For example, if there is age-restricted housing, an exemption can be made to allow age details to be requested.

Is It Difficult to Get Access to a Potential Tenant's Eviction History in Arkansas?

No. Eviction history is a public record and can be accessed directly on CourtConnect or via the employment of third-party software or companies.