Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. HubKey Real Estate are not attorneys. Philadelphia landlord-tenant law is complex and subject to change — consult a qualified attorney before making decisions based on any legal information contained in this post.
Introduction
Picking the wrong tenant is one of the most expensive mistakes a landlord can make. A bad placement can mean months of missed rent, a costly eviction process, and a property left in worse shape than you found it.
Personally, I’ve never had to evict a tenant I’ve screened — since starting out in 2008.
If you own a rental in Philadelphia, proper tenant screening isn’t optional — it’s one of the most important things you’ll do as a landlord. And unlike most cities, Philadelphia has specific laws governing exactly how you can and can’t screen applicants. Get the process right and you’re protected. Skip steps, and you’re one bad application away from a problem tenant.
This guide walks through the entire tenant screening process — from your rental application to legally handling a denial — and explains what Philadelphia law actually requires you to do.
(Note: If you don’t have a Philadelphia rental license yet, you’ll need that in place before you can legally rent your property. Here’s our complete guide on how to get a Philadelphia rental license.)
Table of Contents
The Tenant Screening Process: An Overview
Before you start evaluating applicants, it helps to understand the full picture. Tenant screening for a Philadelphia rental property generally involves six steps:
- Publishing your written screening criteria before accepting applications
- Accepting rental applications and collecting a capped application fee
- Pulling a credit report and reviewing the applicant’s financial history
- Verifying income through pay stubs, tax returns, or employer letters
- Running a background check and evaluating the results within Philadelphia’s legal limits
- Making a decision — and if you’re denying someone, doing it properly and in writing
Each step matters. But the part most landlords get wrong — especially newer ones — is step one. Philadelphia requires you to have your screening criteria ready before you accept a single application. More on that below.
What the Renters’ Access Act Requires Philadelphia Landlords to Do
Philadelphia’s Renters’ Access Act (Philadelphia Code §9-810) changed the rules for how landlords screen tenants in Philadelphia. It took effect in 2021 and it applies to you whether you own one unit or twenty.
Here’s what the law requires:
Before you accept any application or fee, you must give applicants a written copy of your screening criteria. This isn’t a formality — it’s a legal requirement. Your written criteria needs to cover:
- Income requirements (your threshold, typically 3x monthly rent)
- How you’ll evaluate credit (no blanket score cutoffs allowed)
- Your approach to eviction history (only the last 4 years can be considered)
- Criminal history evaluation process
- Application fee amount ($20 maximum in Philadelphia)
- The applicant’s right to dispute a denial
What you cannot do:
- Automatically reject an applicant because their credit score falls below a specific number
- Consider evictions filed or judgments entered four or more years ago
- Decline an applicant for failing to pay rent during a COVID-19 emergency period
- Discriminate based on source of income — that includes Section 8 vouchers, housing assistance, and benefits
If you deny an applicant, you must send a written adverse action letter explaining why. The applicant then has 48 hours to request a reconsideration, and up to seven business days to provide evidence if they believe your decision was based on inaccurate information.
This might feel like a lot. But most of it just requires having a consistent, written process in place before you start screening — which is good practice anyway.
We’ve seen this trip up landlords who’ve been renting for years. One owner we worked with in Fishtown had a perfectly reasonable screening process in his head — income threshold, credit expectations, the works — but had never written any of it down. When a denied applicant pushed back, he couldn’t point to a document. Having something written isn’t just about compliance. It’s what protects you when someone questions your decision.
For the official language, seePhiladelphia’s Renters’ Access Act guidelines from the city’s Fair Housing Commission, and Philadelphia Code §9-810 for the full legal text.
What Credit Score Should You Look For When Screening Tenants in Philadelphia?
Here’s the honest answer: there is no magic number.
Philadelphia law prohibits landlords from automatically rejecting someone because their credit score falls below a specific threshold. So if your current policy is “no one under 650,” that policy needs to change — or at least, it can’t be applied as an automatic cutoff.
What you can do is evaluate the full credit picture. That means looking at:
- Payment history — Are rent and utilities paid on time? That’s more relevant than a score.
- Collections — What are they for? Medical debt is very different from unpaid rent.
- Outstanding debt — High debt loads relative to income are worth flagging.
- Overall trends — Is the credit history getting better or worse over time?
A useful mental shift: think of credit as a story, not a score. Someone with a 620 who has paid their rent on time for five years is a different risk than someone with a 680 who has two utility collections and a recent late payment pattern.
We placed a self-employed graphic designer in a Northern Liberties unit last year. On paper, her credit score was 604 — below what most landlords would even look at. But her payment history was spotless, she had two years of tax returns showing consistent income, and her previous landlord called her “the easiest tenant I’ve ever had.” She’s been in the property 14 months without a single late payment. The score told one story. The full picture told a different one.
Document your evaluation. If you decide to decline based on credit, you need to be able to articulate why — and it needs to be consistent across applicants.
How to Verify Income for a Rental Application in Philadelphia
The most common income benchmark is that a tenant’s gross monthly income should be at least three times the monthly rent. So for a unit renting at $1,800/month, you’re looking for $5,400/month in gross income.
That benchmark is widely used, and it’s reasonable. But how you verify it matters.
Standard income documentation to request:
- W-2 employees: Two to three recent pay stubs, plus an employer contact for verification
- Self-employed applicants: Two years of tax returns and recent bank statements
- Recent hires or career changers: An offer letter with salary confirmation works for new employment
- Section 8 / housing vouchers: Voucher documentation showing the covered portion — treat it the same as employment income under Philadelphia law
A few things worth knowing:
The 3x rule is a guideline, not a requirement. Philadelphia law doesn’t mandate a specific income threshold, but having one documented in your written screening criteria is important. If you have that threshold written down and you apply it consistently, you’re in a defensible position.
Don’t ignore non-traditional income sources. Gig work, rental income, and government benefits all count. Ask for documentation, verify what you can, and apply the same standard you’d use for any other applicant.
What Shows Up in a Background Check — And What Can You Act On?
A standard tenant background check pulls criminal history, eviction records, and sometimes sex offender registry data. Here’s how Philadelphia law shapes what you can actually do with that information.
Eviction history:
Philadelphia limits how far back you can look to four years. Any eviction filed or judgment entered four or more years ago cannot be considered. This is significantly more restrictive than the national standard, which typically allows seven years.
Within the four-year window, you can consider eviction judgments — but you still need to do an individualized assessment. That means looking at the context, not just the fact that an eviction happened. Further, you can’t evict someone for issues held against them during the COVID emergency period (March 2020 – September 2021).
Criminal history:
Philadelphia follows Fair Chance Housing principles, which generally require landlords to consider criminal history only as part of an individualized assessment — not as an automatic disqualifier. The nature of the offense, how long ago it occurred, and evidence of rehabilitation all matter.
If you’re uncertain about where the line is, Philadelphia’s Fair Housing Commission has guidance on this. When in doubt, document your reasoning and be consistent.
What you always need first: written consent from the applicant before running any background check or credit pull. Include this in your rental application.
How to Legally Reject a Tenant Application in Philadelphia
Rejecting an applicant is the part of tenant screening most likely to create legal exposure if it’s done carelessly.
Under the Renters’ Access Act, if you decide to deny an applicant, you must:
- Send a written adverse action notice — this is required, not optional
- Explain the reason for the denial in that notice
- Include a copy of or reference to any screening report that contributed to the decision
- Inform the applicant of their right to dispute the denial within 48 hours
If the applicant requests reconsideration within 48 hours, they have up to seven business days to submit evidence disputing the accuracy of the information you relied on.
A few practical tips:
Keep your decisions consistent. If you approve Applicant A with a 620 credit score and an income of 3.2x rent, and you deny Applicant B with a 640 and an income of 3.1x rent, you need a clear, documented reason for the difference. Inconsistent decisions are where fair housing complaints come from.
Don’t rely on a gut feeling alone. It’s fine to factor in reference calls or application quality — but document everything. Your written screening criteria should reflect all the factors you’re actually using.
Most fair housing complaints don’t come from applicants who were cleanly denied. They come from applicants who felt the process was inconsistent — where one person got approved under conditions that seem similar to someone else who got turned down, and there’s no paper trail explaining the difference. Consistency isn’t just fairness. It’s your best legal protection.
Decline promptly. Don’t leave applicants waiting. If you’ve made a decision, communicate it. It’s the decent thing to do, and it reduces the chance of a complaint from a frustrated applicant.
Tenant Screening Checklist for Philadelphia Landlords
Before you accept your next rental application, make sure you have each of these in place:
- [ ] Written screening criteria document prepared and ready to share with all applicants
- [ ] Rental application that includes consent for background and credit checks
- [ ] Application fee set at $50 or below. You can’t charge more than the actual fee.
- [ ] Credit evaluation process documented (no automatic score cutoffs)
- [ ] Income requirement stated clearly in your written criteria (HubKey’s is 3x monthly rent)
- [ ] Background check vendor selected and compliant with Pennsylvania law
- [ ] Eviction lookback limited to four years
- [ ] Source of income non-discrimination policy in place
- [ ] Adverse action letter template prepared for denials
- [ ] Records kept of all screening decisions and the reasons behind them
Having this in place before you list your property makes the whole process smoother — and keeps you on the right side of the law.
If you’d rather not manage the screening process yourself, HubKey handles tenant screening as part of full property management. We run the applications, verify income, pull background checks, and make placement decisions — all within Philadelphia’s legal requirements. Book a free consultation to learn more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I automatically reject a tenant with a low credit score in Philadelphia?
No. Philadelphia’s Renters’ Access Act prohibits automatic rejections based solely on a credit score falling below a specific number. You’re required to do an individualized assessment — looking at the full credit picture rather than using a single threshold as a hard cutoff.
How much can I charge for a rental application fee in Philadelphia?
The maximum application fee in Philadelphia is $50. This is one of the lowest caps in the country. You cannot charge more than this, even if you’re using a paid background check service. You also can’t charge more than the actual application costs.
Can I deny a tenant because of an eviction on their record?
It depends on when the eviction occurred. Philadelphia law prohibits landlords from considering evictions filed or judgments entered four or more years ago. Within the four-year window, you can consider eviction history — but only as part of an individualized assessment, not as an automatic disqualifier.
Do I have to accept Section 8 vouchers in Philadelphia?
Yes. Philadelphia prohibits source-of-income discrimination, which means you cannot reject an applicant solely because they’re using a Section 8 voucher, housing assistance, or other government benefits. You must evaluate voucher income the same way you’d evaluate employment income.
How long does the tenant screening process typically take?
A thorough screening process — application, credit and background check, income verification, and reference calls — typically takes three to five business days. Running background checks through a reputable screening service speeds this up. Don’t rush it. A bad placement takes much longer to fix than the time it takes to screen carefully.
What happens if I violate the Renters’ Access Act?
Violations can result in complaints filed with Philadelphia’s Fair Housing Commission, civil liability, and fines. More practically, a landlord who denies an applicant using prohibited criteria — like an automatic credit score cutoff — can face a discrimination claim. Keeping your process documented and consistent is the best protection.
