West Virginia Rental Application Form
West Virginia is an ideal place to live because of its affordable cost of living, low crime rate, and exciting outdoor recreational activities. As soon as you find a property to rent in the state, you must submit a rental application form to the landlord.
A rental application form is a document that shows that you intend to be considered for tenancy. Landlords accept multiple applications and approve the best prospective tenant. To help them decide, they conduct a background check to determine a tenant’s ability to pay rent.
What does a background check entail? It covers several aspects, including the applicant’s credit score. Most landlords consider a credit score of 620 and above ideal. They also look at a person’s income to look into a candidate’s financial standing. This often includes investigating if the applicant has loans that may negatively affect their ability to afford rent.
Moreover, a West Virginia landlord will also do an eviction check on the applicant. A history of eviction can negatively influence one’s application. Lastly, the landlord will see if the applicant has a criminal history. Having a record of criminal activity isn’t an automatic basis for rejection. Based on the Department of Housing and Urban Development's guidelines, the landlord must consider if the crime was grave enough to merit a rejection.
Rental Application Fee
There is no law or statute that determines how much rental application fee a West Virginia landlord can collect. However, the rule is it should not be more than the out-of-pocket expenses incurred during the background investigation.
The fee is non-refundable, and the same amount must be collected from all applicants.
Partiality is an important part of the rental application process. Based on the Federal Fair Housing Act, the landlord cannot reject an application on the basis of gender, religion, one’s nation of origin, disability, or familial status.
Security Deposits
A West Virginia landlord can collect a maximum security deposit equivalent to one month’s rent. They can also collect a pet deposit though there is no statute on the maximum amount for it. However, if the pet is a service animal, the landlord cannot collect a pet deposit because it is deemed a necessity.
Unlike the rental application fee, a security deposit is refundable. The landlord has 14 days from the end of the tenancy to return the security deposit to the tenant. The landlord is allowed to deduct some expenses from the security deposit, such as repairs if there is damage to the property and the cost of removing and storing items the tenant has left behind (WV Code § 37-6A-2c).