Tenant applications arrive in a rush after a viewing and get decided in a hurry, which is exactly the condition in which inconsistent treatment happens. The protection is a process you decided before the applications existed, worked in the same order for each one. This page is that process, written for a landlord or manager filling one unit from several applicants.
Work them in the order they arrived
First-come order is not required anywhere, and it is the easiest order to defend because it is not a judgement. Whatever order you use, use the same one every time and be able to say what it was. Working the most promising first is how two applicants end up assessed to different depths, which is the difference nobody can explain afterwards.
Verify the same three things for everyone
Identity, income against your written threshold, and the current landlord's reference. Same evidence standard, same follow-up, same number of attempts to reach a referee. Where an applicant cannot supply something, note what was missing rather than filling the gap with an impression. The file should show one standard applied, not one standard plus several accommodations you can no longer justify.
Decide against the criteria you wrote down
Pull out the criteria you set before advertising and mark each application against them. Record which criterion an unsuccessful application failed, in one line. That line is what makes the batch coherent months later, and it is also what tells you whether your threshold is set sensibly: if every applicant fails the same criterion, the criterion is the problem rather than the applicants.
Close the loop with everyone
Tell the unsuccessful applicants, promptly. If a consumer report contributed to the decision, the adverse-action notice is owed and names the agency and the right to dispute. Beyond the legal minimum, a prompt no is the thing applicants remember about a landlord, and in a market where you will advertise again it is worth more than it costs.
Questions people ask about tenant applications
Can I take applications before showing the unit?
Yes, and many landlords do to reduce viewings. Apply the same rule to everyone: taking some applications early and others only after a viewing is an inconsistency.
How many applications should I take?
Enough to fill the unit, and stopping once you have accepted someone is normal. What matters is that you tell the others rather than leaving them waiting.
Should I keep unsuccessful applications?
Yes, with the decision noted, for a couple of years. That file is the evidence your process was consistent if anyone ever asks.