An apartment application collects what a landlord needs to decide, and the line between what is needed and what is merely interesting is drawn by federal fair-housing law rather than by curiosity. The safest application is also the shortest: the facts that bear on whether this person can and will pay the rent and keep the property, asked of everyone in the same way. This page is about drawing that line.
What belongs on it
Identity and contact details, current and previous address with dates, the current landlord's contact, employment and stated income, the people and pets who would move in, the desired move-in date, and consent to contact the references named. That is enough to decide almost every ordinary application, and everything on that list bears directly on the tenancy rather than on the applicant as a person.
What federal law keeps off it
Questions that go to race, colour, religion, sex, familial status, national origin or disability, whether asked directly or through a proxy. Familial status is the one most often tripped over: asking how many children, or steering an applicant with children toward particular units, is exactly what the statute is about. Disability is the other: you may ask whether an applicant can meet the tenancy's requirements, never about a condition.
One process, applied identically
Write down your criteria before you advertise, apply them to every applicant in the same order, and keep the completed applications. A defensible decision is one where the file shows the same questions asked of everyone and the same standard applied. An indefensible one is not usually a decision made in bad faith; it is one where nobody can now reconstruct why two applicants were treated differently.
Screening reports are a separate step with separate rules
If you obtain a credit or background report you are using a consumer report, and federal rules attach: you need a permissible purpose and the applicant's authorisation, and if you act adversely on it you owe them notice of that and of their right to dispute it. This site's worksheet collects the application only. It runs no screening and holds no credit or criminal data, deliberately.
Questions people ask about apartment application
Can I charge an application fee?
In most states yes, and several cap it or require it to reflect actual screening cost, with some requiring a refund of the unused part. It is a state-level rule worth checking before you set the amount.
How long should I keep applications from people I did not house?
Long enough to show your process was consistent if asked, which in practice means a couple of years. Keep them the same way for everyone.
Can I ask for proof of income?
Yes, and a stated income figure is worth verifying the same way for every applicant. What matters is that the requirement and the threshold are identical for everyone.