Property management & leasing
Rental History: Definition & Example
What Is Rental History?
Rental history is a record of where an applicant has rented in the past, including how long they stayed, whether they paid on time, and how they left each property.
What does rental history mean?
Landlords review rental history to predict how an applicant will act as a tenant. The key questions are whether rent was paid on time, whether there were lease violations or complaints, whether the unit was left in good condition, and whether the previous landlord would rent to them again.
Rental history comes from the application, from contacting previous landlords (a landlord reference or verification of rent), and sometimes from eviction records in a tenant screening report.
Applicants with no rental history, such as first-time renters, are often asked for a guarantor, a larger deposit, or other evidence of reliability.
Rental history example
An applicant lists two prior addresses covering the last four years. The manager sends each prior landlord a rental verification form. Both confirm on-time payments and a clean move-out, and one says they would rent to the applicant again.
Related terms
- Landlord ReferenceA landlord reference is information a current or previous landlord provides about an applicant’s tenancy, such as dates, rent amount, payment history, and whether they would rent to them again.
- Verification of RentVerification of rent (VOR) is confirmation from a current or previous landlord of an applicant’s tenancy dates, rent amount, and payment history.
- 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.
- EvictionAn eviction is the legal process a landlord uses to remove a tenant from a rental property, usually for unpaid rent, a lease violation, or the end of a tenancy.
- Rental LedgerA rental ledger is a running record of every charge and payment on a tenant’s account, including rent, fees, credits, and the resulting balance.
Rental history FAQ
- How far back do landlords check rental history?
- Commonly two to five years. Many applications ask for every address in that period so the landlord can contact each prior landlord.
