Have you heard of this?

Question

is it legal, moral, weird, off-putting or otherwise just....not right for a landlord to demand photos of your family and children  prior to renting to you? How about when he demands, after asking how you are going to afford the rent, to see you disability paperwork, military discharge, and VA records? Has anyone heard of this?

Jonna Weber · Answer

I request the same things that @Steve Babiak does.   The entire thing sounds fishy to me, especially the lease as described.

Steve Babiak · Answer

I require a gov't issued photo ID to verify that the applicant's identity isn't stolen or fake; a copy of this is kept in the application file. I don't ask about photos of children, but my application and lease have places for listing all names of occupants (including children); this is to be certain that the number of occupants does not exceed the policy we follow of total occupants being less than or equal to the formula: number of bedrooms times two, plus one additional. If a pet is being included, a photo of the pet is required.

I require documented proof of all sources of income that an applicant will be using to meet the income qualification minimum. What documents that entails will depend on the sources of income that the applicant is claiming. You might have a letter that establishes the dollar amount of payments per payment period; this should be sufficient proof IMO.

Sounds like you are dealing with a landlord who is seeking a higher quality tenant; some of the shadier tenants will balk at some of these types of requests and move along to apply elsewhere.

Rob Beland · Answer

@Dennis Graceasking about your children could be a violation of the fair housing act. The same goes for asking about your military background. Its a grey area. Im not sure asking for photos is illegal but if your application is denied because of the children that is illegal. He also can't discriminate based on veteran/military status. Generally speaking it all sounds very strange and you should report him for the fair housing violation.

Steve Vaughan · Answer

I would make sure this 'LL' is actually the owner of the property.  This whole thing sounds a little shady @Dennis Grace, especially the lease and photo requests.

Online, look up your county website.  Under departments look for 'Assessor' then 'parcel search'. Plug in the address.  Is this person listed as the owner of record?

Dennis Grace · Answer

sorry Steve, I didn't see the question you had at the end of the post. We were there only 3 months. We couldn't find a cause for all of her issues so I started digging. I went into her play room and look everywhere for anything. I found a carpet nail (I guess that's what they are called, small little thing but sharp like a tack) that was nailed from under the floor up through the floor. I thought "maybe she has poked her self on thay and is just complaining about that pain but can't tell me. As I looked further through the room I noticed paint flakes everywhere and the movie Tommy Boy came to mind like a flash: "did you eat paint chips as a kid". I immediately had it tested and it came back as leaded paint. All through her room in the form of dust and flakes. It went unnoticed before because it was along the base boards. I took her to the doctor and they checked her levels. First test was close to 10.  Venous draw was a touch lower. Docs said "that seems to be the issue" and sent the sample off to HHS to record for further surveillance.

Jennifer T. · Answer

It is NEVER appropriate or legal to ask for the nature of someone's disability...much less to apparently be blabbing to the neighbors that your new tenant is a disabled vet.

For example, if a prospective tenant has disability income...I'll ask the amount/proof of that income.  If a prospective tenant has a support animal for a disability...I might ask for documentation they need a service animal.  But neither of those situations require me to know the nature of the disability.  It's not my business and it doesn't matter.

Though, what I do often find is prospective tenants will usually volunteer that information.

Linda Weygant · Answer

Sounds like there's a HIPAA violation in there somewhere as well.  Snooping through your medical files without a release from you is a HUGE no-no for your medical provider and the landlord as well.

Dennis Grace · Answer

Lease was extremely basic: I mr. So and so am renting the property at 123 main to Mr. Grace. Rent is due on the 15th of the month. Tenant will mow the lawn

Literally that was all there was. As far as the homeland security thing,  he wasn't exactly truthful. He is the director of the emergency management system for the county. His training is with the EPA and training other agencies on EPA programs and toxic chemicals and hazards. But I grt what you are saying and it's a good idea for anyone to check their entire lease

Steve Babiak · Answer

The job in Homeland security is not specifically concerned with environmental issues; the EPA does that. But if the house was built before 1978, federal law requires some specific disclosures regarding lead based paint for all landlords (and sellers); state and local laws might also require lead based paint disclosures as well (like Philadelphia does). Sometimes the lead based paint disclosure is contained in the middle of the lease, so you might have been given a proper disclosure that is not blatantly obvious to see; nonetheless, federal law does require a tenant be given this disclosure before signing a lease. For how long did you live there before your daughter started showing symptoms of being sick?

BTW - the post I am quoting here was posted during the time I was writing my previous post ...

Dennis Grace · Answer

Wow, you guys are up and at 'em early! Thank you so much for the replies. It's nice to hear from landlords as to what is expected and what is common. I did offer to give this bloke a certified VA letter stating my finances. I also had to rent in a hurry as work was moving me out of the town I was living in, and over 1000 miles away in a matter of days. So, like a fool, I took the first available home. It was actually quite gorgeous and in a great neighborhood.

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