Property management & leasing
Applicant: Definition & Example
What Is an Applicant?
An applicant is a person who formally asks to rent a property, borrow money, or join a program by submitting an application and the information the decision-maker requests.
What does applicant mean?
In rental housing, an applicant is anyone who fills out a rental application for a specific unit. Until a lease is signed, they are not a tenant. They are a prospective resident whose information the landlord or property manager reviews against written rental criteria.
Most rental applications ask for identity details, current and past addresses, employment or income information, references, and consent for any background or credit check the landlord plans to run. Every adult who will live in the unit is usually treated as a separate applicant, even when they share one application.
The word is used the same way in lending and other programs. A loan applicant, a membership applicant, and a rental applicant all hand over information so someone else can decide whether to approve the request.
Applicant example
Maria finds a two-bedroom apartment listed at $1,600 per month. She submits the property’s online application, pays the $45 application fee, and authorizes a background check. She is now an applicant for that unit. Her roommate, who will also live there, fills out a separate application and becomes a co-applicant.
Related terms
- Co-ApplicantA co-applicant is a second person who applies alongside the main applicant and will share legal responsibility for the lease or loan if it is approved.
- Application FeeAn application fee is a charge a landlord or property manager collects when someone applies to rent, usually to cover the cost of screening and processing the application.
- Rental CriteriaRental criteria are the written standards a landlord uses to evaluate every applicant, such as minimum income, rental history, credit, and background requirements.
- Tenant ScreeningTenant screening is the process landlords use to evaluate rental applicants, typically by reviewing identity, income, rental history, credit, and background information against written criteria.
- GuarantorA guarantor is a person who signs an agreement promising to pay a tenant’s or borrower’s obligations, such as rent, if the tenant or borrower does not pay.
Applicant FAQ
- What is the difference between an applicant and a tenant?
- An applicant has applied to rent a unit but has not signed a lease. A tenant has signed a lease (or has an oral rental agreement) and has the legal right to occupy the unit.
- Does every adult need to apply?
- Most landlords require every adult occupant, usually anyone 18 or older, to submit an application so the same criteria can be applied to each person who will live in the unit.
