Landlords Fight Back as Minneapolis Looks to Change Ordinance but Should Ensure Rental Policies Remain Compliant; Opines TenantScreeningUSA.com

WALTHAM, Mass., July 16, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- In Minneapolis, MN landlords are pushing back against potential change in law that may reduce their ability to select rental property tenants. Adam Almeida, President and CEO of TenantScreeningUSA.com opines; "The on-going action in Minneapolis between landlords and their city council should immediately alert any landlord, in Minneapolis or across the country, to work with a well-qualified, third-party tenant screening agency to remain legally compliant."

Landlords in Minneapolis have been challenged with potential new laws that would restrict their ability to select a rental candidate.

From StarTribune.com (Jun 22, 19) discussing the proposed ordinances:

...property owners would be unable to deny a renter on the basis of misdemeanors more than two years old, arrests that did not result in a conviction, expunged or vacated convictions, and felony convictions if the cases are more than five years old.

Landlords could still deny an applicant with a felony conviction involving arson, racketeering, manufacturing methamphetamine and being on the sex offender registry. (1)

In recent years municipalities have been enacting laws to allow greater acceptance of rental applicants and ease roadblocks or restrictions.

Laws will continue to change and challenge landlords and/or property managers. Just as "ban-the-box" legislation has changed pre-employment background screening, changes to laws governing the use of criminal history and eviction reports will impact how landlords conduct their business.

Almeida states: "Places such as Portland and Seattle have led the country in creating policies that relax the power of a tenant background check insomuch that certain portions of a typical tenant check, specifically criminal history checks or evictions reports, may not be allowed. And consumer credit scores are being downplayed as well."

From CityPages.com (Jun 04, 19):

If this ordinance becomes law, landlords would no longer be allowed to turn applicants away because they were convicted of a felony… if that conviction took place more than five years ago. The same goes for misdemeanors more than two years old, and arrests that never resulted in convictions.

They also couldn't refuse someone just because they didn't have a robust credit or rental history, or because their credit score is lower than 500. Evictions that occurred more than three years ago would also be out of bounds. (2)

Almeida concludes: "Now more than ever, and with on-going challenges in law, landlords should work with a well-qualified, third-party tenant screening agency to help them remain compliant with law."

TenantScreeningUSA.com provides full service tenant screening for landlords and property managers of any size and can greatly assist in remaining fully compliant with all existing law governing the proper use of all tenant background reports. With a highly trained and experienced staff, TenantScreeningUSA.com can provide help to landlords and property managers with all tenant screening requirements.

Notes:
(1)    startribune.com/minneapolis-landlords-ramp-up-campaign-against-tenant-screening-ordinances/511649652/
(2)    citypages.com/news/landlords-arent-happy-about-minneapolis-plan-to-soften-tenant-screenings/510775961

SOURCE Tenant Screening USA