A Nebraska Rental Application is an essential tool for gathering all the necessary information to make informed decisions about prospective tenants for your property.
Laws
- Application Fee – Non-refundable
- Application Fee Limits – No limits
- Security Deposit – § 76-1416 – tenants can be charged up to one (1) month’s rent, and if they have pets, landlords may additionally charge no more than twenty-five percent (25%) of the monthly rent.
State Laws
Below you can find essential details about rental regulations in Nebraska, covering application fees, security deposits, pet deposits, adhering to fair housing laws, and obtaining authorization for background checks.
Application Fees
Property owners must follow the Nebraska Landlord and Tenant Act concerning application fees and security deposits.
- Landlords are allowed to charge an application fee, and there is no limit to the application fee that a landlord can charge.
- Landlords should be careful not to charge too much for an application fee and keep the amount similar to the cost of processing the rental application.
Security Deposit
Landlords are also allowed to collect a security deposit that they can use to cover damage caused by the tenant or for unpaid rent.
As per Nebraska Revised Statute 76-1416, landlords cannot charge more than one month’s rent for a security deposit.
Pet Deposit
A landlord may not require a pet deposit in excess of one-fourth of one month’s rent.
Federal and Nebraska Fair Housing Laws
As a property owner, you must collect a lot of information but ensure you follow the Federal Fair Housing Act and the Nebraska Fair Housing Act.
This means that you cannot discriminate against potential tenants based on the following:
- Their religious beliefs
- Their sexual orientation or gender identity
- Whether the applicant has a mental or physical disability
- Whether the applicant is married or has children (marital or familial status)
- The race, color, or national origin of the applicant
How to Conduct an Eviction Records Search
By researching a prospective tenant’s eviction history in Nebraska, you can potentially avoid the need for an eviction notice in the future. Here is how to get started:
- Navigate to the Nebraska Civil Case Information eServices web page
- Perform a JUSTICE One-Time Court Case Search to conduct a single search
- Create an eServices account to perform multiple searches
There is a $15 charge per search for single searches, and the search will return up to 30 records.
Landlords who anticipate performing many searches can sign up for an eServices account for an annual $100 charge. You may assign ten user names and passwords per account, which may be helpful for property management companies.
Sample
Below, you can download a Nebraska Rental Application in PDF or Word format:
