Tenant Screening and Application Fees

Screening Fee 

Landlords may use screening fees to obtain information about a prospective tenant like a consumer credit report. Prospective tenants should expect to receive a copy of their credit report within 7 days of receipt by the landlord, a receipt for the fee paid and an itemized list of any out-of-pocket expenses and time spent by the landlord on the screening, and a refund of any unused portion of the fee. If the tenant provides a reusable screening report, the landlord must use it.

The landlord cannot charge a prospective tenant a screening fee if no rental unit is actually available. The landlord must also return a screening fee to any applicant not selected, or have a policy under which they: (1) review applications in the order received and the first qualified applicant gets the unit, and (2) do not charge a screening fee to any applicant not considered.

For more information, see California Civil Code Section 1950.6.

Notification of state law limitation on tenant screening fees (BMC 13.78.010)

When an owner or the owner’s agent gets a request to rent residential property in Berkeley from an applicant and the owner charges a fee to purchase a consumer credit report and to validate, review, or otherwise process an application, the owner must provide, either in the rental application or in a separate disclosure before receiving the fee, a clear and conspicuous tenant screening fee rights statement and a statement of the maximum fee cap permitted under California Civil Code Section 1950.6(b).

The “Tenant Screening Fee Rights Statement” shall mean the following statement or a substantially similar statement:

"Pursuant to California law you have tenant screening fee rights, including the right to a copy of your consumer credit report if one is obtained with your screening fee, a refund of any unused portion of the fee and a receipt of the costs of the screening. For more information about your rights, please visit [URL to be provided by City]."

*This page will be updated once the URL is provided by the City.

Prohibition of non-refundable application fees associated with existing tenancies (BMC 13.78.016)

An owner of residential rental property (or the owner’s agent) cannot charge a non-refundable fee to any existing tenant for the purpose of renewing a tenancy, in whole or in part, including any fee associated with the departure of a roommate or to request to add or replace a roommate in a pre-existing household.

Applicability to Existing Rental Agreements (BMC 13.78.018)

Chapter 13.78 applies to all residential rental agreements regardless of any contractual language in any rental agreement or lease to the contrary. Any provision of an existing rental agreement or lease that violates the provisions of this chapter are unenforceable.