The problem
Screening by hand means consent forms in email, reports from another site and notes in different places, which makes it hard to show every applicant was judged the same way. If a firm processes 24 applications a month at about 45 minutes each for consent, ordering, filing and the decision letter, that's 18 hours a month, and a fair housing complaint is harder to answer without a clean file.
What the AI does
Buildium's tenant screening, powered by TransUnion, starts with the applicant submitting their information and consent. It returns a credit check, criminal background check and eviction history, and you can set a credit score requirement for each property so Buildium shows a recommendation from the applicant's data. Buildium doesn't decide. A person on your team compares each report with your written screening criteria, applied the same way to every applicant in the order applications arrive, and records the reason. If you deny an applicant, or add a condition such as a higher deposit, because of the report, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires an adverse action notice that names TransUnion and tells the applicant of their right to a free copy and to dispute it.
A worked example
An illustrative example built from typical figures, not a named business.
A property management firm in Atlanta with 2 leasing staff manages 110 units and processes about 24 applications a month. It writes screening criteria with its owners, publishes them with every listing, and runs all screening through Buildium Essential, passing the $35£26€31A$51C$49 fee to applicants.
Before
About 45 minutes an application across email, a screening site and paper files: 18 hours a month
After
About 20 minutes an application reviewing the report against written criteria in one place: 8 hours a month
What it's worth
About $250£188€224A$361C$353 a month saved, against a cost from $62£47€55A$90C$88. That's 10 hours a month, worth $250£188€224A$361C$353 if leasing staff cost $25£19€22A$36C$35 an hour. Essential starts at $62£47€55A$90C$88 a month, but the page doesn't say how the price rises for 110 units, so ask for a quote; Growth, from $192£144€172A$277C$271 adds Enhanced Tenant Screening and phone support. Screening is $17£13€15A$25C$24 a screen, or $35£26€31A$51C$49 paid by the applicant. If you already use Buildium, the extra cost is nil.
How to set it up
- Write screening criteria with each owner (income, credit, rental history and how criminal history is weighed) and check them against your state and city rules, some of which limit criminal history checks or protect source of income.
- Publish the criteria with every listing and give them to each applicant before they pay a fee; check whether your state caps application fees.
- Set the property's credit score requirement in Buildium to match the written criteria, and treat Buildium's recommendation as one input only.
- Have a person decide each application against the criteria, in the order received, and record the reason in the applicant's file.
- Send an FCRA adverse action notice whenever a report leads to a denial, a higher deposit or a co-signer, using a template your broker or attorney has approved.
- Handle requests for a reasonable accommodation, such as an assistance animal, through your written policy, never through a screening score.
What goes wrong
- A blanket rule, such as refusing anyone with any criminal record, can breach the Fair Housing Act. Weigh records against written, individual criteria, and have a fair housing attorney review them.
- Buildium's screening page doesn't mention adverse action notices. Sending one is your duty under the FCRA, not the software's.
- Applying criteria differently, even with good intentions, is how fair housing complaints start. Use the same order and the same rules for every applicant.
- Application fees passed to applicants may be capped or regulated in your state or city. Check before charging $35£26€31A$51C$49.