A Louisiana Rental Application allows landlords to gather information about prospective tenants. Verifying an applicant’s rental history, finances, income, and background may prevent you from offering a lease agreement to a tenant prone to late rent payments and property damage.
State Laws
There are specific laws for how landlords should carry out the rental application process in Louisiana. Ensure you’re aware of the state laws before signing a lease agreement.
Application Fees
There is no limit set on Louisiana rental application fees that landlords can charge to recover the cost of screening tenants.
In Louisiana, they are typically non-refundable even if the landlord eventually rejects an application.
Security Deposits
Louisiana doesn’t limit the amount of security deposit you can charge each adult rental applicant and also doesn’t require landlords to:
- Provide a security deposit receipt.
- Pay interest on security deposit accounts.
- Hold security deposit funds separate from other accounts — though it is advisable.
However, Louisiana law mandates that the security deposit be returned to the tenant within one month after the end of the rental agreement. In addition, if you sell your property during the term of a rental agreement, you must transfer the deposit funds to the new owner. They will then be responsible for maintaining these funds and returning them at the end of the original rental agreement.
Pet Deposits
According to Louisiana law, there is no maximum deposit amount a landlord can request to offset the potential cost of damages by a tenant’s pets. Like security deposits, however, you must return these funds per the Louisiana Lessee’s Deposit Act at the end of a rental agreement.
You have one month to return the funds minus any deductions and an itemized list of the charges for unreasonable wear and tear. Failure to return a deposit within one month may entitle tenants to the greater of actual damages or $200.
How To Conduct an Eviction Record Search
Landlords sometimes hire third-party services to search for past evictions when evaluating Louisiana rental applications. Since these records are in the public domain, you may also access them online by following these steps:
- Open Louisiana’s Court Records Search.
- Enter the applicant’s first and last name and city.
Other Landlord Resources
Start a successful Louisiana rental by screening prospective tenants thoroughly and familiarizing yourself with the state and federal laws governing rental relationships.
- Fair Housing Laws in Louisiana – The Louisiana Equal Housing Opportunity Act prohibits discrimination in the rental application process. Like the Federal Fair Housing Act, it prohibits landlords from denying applications based on religion, sex, national origin, race, color, familial status, or disability.
- Louisiana’s Sex Offender Registry – Under Louisiana Revised Statutes § 14:91.9, sex offenders cannot establish residence within three miles of their victims. Protect your interests and tenants using the State Sex Offender and Child Predator Registry.
Sample
Download our Louisiana rental application template to make sure you screen your applicants thoroughly. If you’d like to customize your form, use our document builder.
