This Idaho Rental/Lease Application is helpful for property managers, landlords, owners, or anyone who needs to vet a potential tenant before deciding to offer a lease agreement.
A comprehensive rental application asks for all necessary information about prospective tenants, such as their name and personal information, current address, previous rental history, employment, and financial information.
Under the Federal Fair Housing Act, a rental application may not ask questions about a prospective tenant’s race, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, or sex (gender identity and sexual orientation).
However, the Idaho Fair Housing Law allows some limited exemptions from the Fair Housing laws under certain circumstances.
- Family status. You may inquire about children for two-family owner-occupied rentals. Owner-occupied rentals may decline to rent to families with children.
- Age. An applicant’s age can be a determining factor in age-restricted communities and senior housing. The Housing for Older Persons Exemption is a federal exemption for individuals over 62.
- Idaho recognizes the Mrs. Murphy Exemption, which exempts owner-occupied dwellings of four units or less from the Fair Housing Act if the owner or a family member occupies one of those units.
Idaho Rental Application Fees
There is no limit on what a landlord may charge for Idaho rental application fees.
Experts advise landlords and property managers to use their best judgment and keep the fees reasonable and proportional to the cost of the background check or other applicable fees.
Idaho state law does not limit the amount of security deposit a landlord can collect. There is also no requirement for a separate holding account for the deposit.
However, a rental unit must be available before the landlord can accept a rental application, deposit, or fee. The law does not allow landlords to collect applications for future vacancies.
Authorization for Background Check
As a part of the rental application process, Idaho landlords should inform the tenant that they will perform a criminal history check, credit check, financial and employment history, and rental history check.
The Federal Credit Reporting Act requires a prospective tenant to give written consent before a landlord can conduct a background check. The tenant signs a rental application with a consent statement or a separate consent form.
If your background check agency does not provide a separate form, you can download a copy of our background check authorization form.
How To Conduct an Eviction Record Search in Idaho
You should search for records to determine if your candidate has been evicted or broken a lease. You can have an agency do this, or you can do the research yourself.
To access Idaho state eviction records:
- Go to the iCourt Portal. This will take you to the central Idaho state court website.
- Press the Smart Search button, and enter either a record number or the person’s last name in the search field.
- Check the CAPTCHA field (“I’m not a robot”) and click Submit.
- Select the Case Number to view the case details.
- Press continue to pay for the documents.
There is a 3.5% transaction fee for credit card payments. As of December 2022, the court does not accept PayPal and similar online transaction payments.
Review the names carefully. Individuals can have similar or identical names. Check for other identifying features in the case files.
Other Resources for Landlords in Idaho
The Landlord and Tenant Manual comes from the Idaho Attorney General’s Office to help both parties understand their rights and responsibilities.
The Blaine County Housing Authority lists resources for local landlords and valuable links for all Idaho landlords and property managers.
Check the Idaho State Sex Offender Registry to see if the state lists your applicant as a sex offender.
How to Write a Rental Application
Follow the steps below to write a rental application in Idaho.
Step 1 – Fill in Property Address Information
Write the date of the rental application and the address of the rental property.
Step 2 – Collect Basic Rental Applicant Information
This section provides the applicant(s) basic identifying information about themselves.
Step 3 – Collect Applicant’s Residence History
In this section, the applicant(s) provides their residence history including addresses, dates of residency and reasons for moving.
Step 4 – Gather Applicant’s Employment History
This section is for the applicant(s) to provide current and previous employment information and other sources of income.
Step 5 – Gather Applicant’s Financial History
This section is for the applicant(s) to provide bank account and credit card information.
Step 6 – Collect References
The applicant(s) provides personal references’ names and contact information in this section.
Step 7 – Additional Questions and Verification
This section contains additional questions to determine more information about the applicant such as smoking or pets.
Sample Idaho Rental Application Form
Below is an example of a standard Idaho rental application form. You may download this free form or use our document builder to create a customized Idaho rental application that covers all the details unique to your real estate needs.