Rental Application and Qualification Requirements

***PLEASE READ ENTIRE APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS BELOW BEFORE PROCEEDING TO ONLINE APPLICATION****

NOTE: Each adult, 18 years or older, that will be living at the property, must submit an application and pay the $75.00 application fee. All parties making application on the same property may use the same application and the additional parties be listed as co-applicants.

Application processing times are normally 24 to 48 business days from the time we receive all the required documents, information and application fee payment.

Thank you for considering renting from OCONEE MANAGEMENT GROUP.

The following are rental qualifications guidelines for application approval.

Initial Lease Term:

Initial lease term is a minimum of 12 months. Longer terms may be available upon owner approval. OMG does not do short term rentals.

Employment/Income:

All applicants must show proof of combined gross monthly income no less than 1 1/2 times the market monthly rental rate or produce current bank statements reflecting a minimum balance exceeding TWO times the amount of the monthly lease amount.

Unrelated roommates will each be required to verify no less than 1 1/2 times the market rental rate and produce bank statements as well. We will contact your employer to verify the employment information provided to us.

Acceptable Income Verification Includes One of the Following:

• Last two paycheck stubs showing year to date earnings;
• Employment verification, or accepted offer letter, on company letterhead signed by a direct supervisor, or payroll or human resources department representative, or
• Two years of tax returns. If you are self employed, instead of pay stubs you can provide one of the following:
• The most recent two years of tax returns with an accountant's signature or
• Bank Statements for the past twelve (12) months OR
• One or more 1099's showing income for contract work

Other Possible Sources of Verifiable Income:

Social Security, retirement or pension, trust funds, disability payments, substantial savings accounts, spousal or child support, and second jobs are examples of acceptable sources of income when written verification is available.

Tips or cash paid income can only be counted toward the gross income with verification from the employer in writing. Income may be combined in some circumstances. A married couple's income may be combine to qualify for this requirement.

Adult roommates must each have income of 1 1/2 times the monthly rent. If income is short of this requirement, a qualified cosigner may be used to offset income if credit and residency is acceptable. Cosigner must reside in the same state as rental property.

Residence History: Applicant must show positive rental and/or mortgage history. We look at your last 2 years of residency for positive, verifiable, history. Applicant history must be free of late payments, NSF checks, warrants, complaints, and condition of property when you left must be acceptable. We also verify that proper notice was given and that you did not leave with a balance due or collection account. If you leased from an apartment community, they usually require written notice from you before they will verify your history. If you have recently or currently own a home the mortgage payment history will be on your credit report and we will not have to call the lender.

Credit Report: Applicant must show positive credit history. Payment history, the amount of debt and amount of credit available is generally revealed in your credit history. Key locations uses Experian, Transunion Credit Bureau to pull the credit reports and FICO scores of all adults 18 years or older who will occupy the home. Applicants with FICO scores above 650 that meet income and residency requirements generally are approved with security deposits of one month's rent. Applicants that have weaker credit scores, recent bankruptcies, collections or slow payment history generally can be approved, BUT may be required to pay higher security deposit's after evaluation of income and residency.

Criminal Background Policy: Applicants must have NO felony convictions less than ten (10) years old that involve violent crimes against persons or property, including but not limited to: Murder, Arson, Kidnapping, Assault, Bomb Related Offenses, Robbery, burglary, stalking, Terrorism, or any that involve the manufacturing or distribution of illegal or controlled drugs in any manner. All other felony convictions must be more than five (5) years old and have no new criminal activity of any sort or kind for at least five (5) years before this application is required. Applicants that are registered Sex Offenders will be denied. Conviction of any drug related offenses involving possession only, or alcohol related offenses where no one was permanently injured or killed, must be at least two (2) years old. Successful completion of any misdemeanor sentence at least two (2) years ago and no new criminal activity for at least two (2) years before this application is required.

Other Requirements:

• Valid photo identification, either a state driver's license or state photo identification card is required with the application.
• Valid Social Security Card, or Resident Alien Card, Work Visa, or Passport is required to show legality in the United States.
• All adults (18 and over) are required to submit an application, and application fee, with the above identification provided. All parties making application on the same property may use the same application and the additional parties be listed as co-applicants. All adults, 18 and over, are also required to be listed on and sign the lease. Children, ages 17 and under do not have to provide social security numbers on the application, but we do require names and birthdates if they are to occupy the premises.
• Oconee Management Group can often offset a weak area by strengthening another. A larger Security Deposit or a Qualified Co-Signor may offset weak credit or new employment.
• These are costs incurred when applying for a rental.

Upon Application Approval: In order to take the property off the market, after you have been approved, you must pay the security deposit in full on line through the tenant portal OR provide a cashier's check or money order with 24 hours. Failure to comply with this requirement will result in your application being closed and the property being released to the next applicant. If you have a pet(s), a Pet Deposit will be required to be paid as well prior to occupancy.

After paying the security deposit and the rental has been removed from the rental market and reserved under your name, should you decide to not sign a lease or cancel the application, the security deposit will be forfeited to the owner for lost rents due to cancellation and cancelled marketing of the property.  

Prior to move in date: A full month's rent will also be required to be paid FOUR (4) days before the lease start. Failure to provide payment on line within FOUR (4) days, will require applicant to pay the funds in a cashier's check or money order before keys are provided. If rent is prorated, due to move in date not falling on the first day of the month, then prorated first month's rent will need to be paid.

Renters Insurance: Tenants are required to have renter's insurance policy in place prior to taking possession of the property. A copy of the policy must be provided to the Property Manager.

PET POLICY

Rental criteria: Animal policies vary from one owner to the next. Some will not allow any animals while others may allow dogs but not cats. Please contact the office to learn about the specific animal policy of the rental before applying.

Multi-family: We generally do not allow pets in multi-family because there are too many complaints of noise, odor, or not cleaning up after them.

Dangerous breeds: Many insurance providers will not cover certain breeds of dogs because of the increased liability risk. For this reason, the following breeds (full or mixed) will not be allowed in any of our rentals: Pit Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Terriers, Rottweilers, German Shepherds, Presa Canarios, Chow Chows, Doberman Pinschers, Akitas, Wolf-hybrids, Mastiffs, Cane Corsos, Great Danes, Alaskan Malamutes, or Siberian Huskies.

Other restrictions: We do not permit ferrets or rodents of any kind. Aquariums must be 10 gallons or smaller. Possession of any poisonous, dangerous, endangered species, or other unauthorized animal may be grounds for termination.

NOTE: If you have an open bankruptcy we will not be able to approve your application.

If you know you have less than desirable credit (650), be prepared... you may need to pay a deposit in the amount of 2 months' rent or more to offset the risk to the owner.

Non-Refundable Pet Fee: Pet policy is determined by property owner. Additional pet fees may be required as well as a pet exhibit attached to the lease. You may also be required to have all carpets professionally cleaned at the end of your lease, spray for fleas and repair damages caused by animal.

The pet fee is generally $500 for the first small breed pet and $100 per additional pet, but may be flexible with excellent credit and type of pets. The fee is typically $750 for a large breed pet.