Rental Policy and Process

Our apartments are rented on a first come, first served basis.

We evaluate every rental application in the following manner:

1. Each prospective tenant needs to complete and submit a rental application, pay a *non-refundable $18 screening processing fee per applicant, along with a promise to pay $1000 holding deposit once your application is approved. (*fees are not charged for Portland properties).
2. We will process your application through our screening process*, which will check your credit report, criminal history, rental background, and verification of proof of income to confirm that you fully meet our criteria. Based on this screening criteria, you will either be approved, conditional with the need of a qualified guarantor or denied for the apartment.

   *We are required by Maine law to provide you, the applicant, with a complete copy of the information obtained by the screening process. 

3. Once we receive all necessary applications along with your holding deposit, we will reserve the apartment for you for a period of 24 hours. During this time, the unit is taken off the market, and no other applicants can apply. We also encourage you to review the lease, along with our policies and procedures, and to ask any questions that arise.

**As soon as you are APPROVED, the $1000 holding deposit is automatically drafted from the account in which you paid your screening fees from and will be applied towards your last month’s rent.

4. If you choose not to rent this apartment within this initial 24-hour period, we will issue you a check refunding your $1,000 holding deposit with 2 business days.
5. If you choose not to rent this apartment after the 24-hour period has expired, you will forfeit your holding deposit. If the apartment re-rents and a new tenant begins their lease within 30 days of what would have been your lease start date, we will refund any monies due to you after the prorated rent is deducted.

To qualify for an apartment with Port Property, you must meet the following criteria, or be an applicant from a Project Home approved program:

INCOME: Your verifiable gross monthly income should be at least two and a half times the monthly rent. If you don’t meet our income criteria, you may need to provide a qualified guarantor. Please see below for guarantor criteria.

RENTAL HISTORY: Negative rental history, such as a past eviction, owing a previous landlord money, or being sued by a prior landlord will result in your application being declined.

CREDIT HISTORY/BACKGROUND CHECK: We use a software system that determines a “Risk Score” for each applicant.  This “Risk Score” is determined by running a credit and criminal background check on every person over the age of 18 residing in our apartments. If a felony of any kind or a criminal charge/misdemeanor involving dishonesty or violence is found in your background check, or if you are on a sex offender registry, your application will be denied. To obtain a copy of your screening report, please visit RentGrow.com. 

Risk Score:  Applicants with a “Risk Score” between 501-619, or no credit history, require a guarantor to rent an apartment. We cannot approve an applicant with a Risk Score of 500 or below, with or without a guarantor.

If applicant doesn’t have a Social Security Number:

1. Verification of credit score in your country of origin. Please have your bank institute from your country of origin send verification of your credit score directly to Port Property at admin@portproperty.com or fax 207-761-0770. We will determine the strength of your credit score based on your country of origin’s credit range.

2. Verification of one of the following:
   • Certificate of Eligibility for Exchange Visitor Status DS2019 and Visa and/or Passport – must show work placement and/or offer agreement
   • Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant (Student) I-20 and Visa and/or Passport – must show income for school costs and housing

Security Deposit:  Your security deposit amount will range from $300 to one full month’s rent. This scale is based on your “Risk Score.” A lower “Risk Score” will result in a higher security deposit, while a higher “Risk Score” results in a lower security deposit. One full month’s rent is required for all applicants without a Social Security Number.

Guarantor Requirements:  If you do not meet the income, rental or credit history criteria mentioned above, you may still qualify for an apartment by having a third party guarantee your lease. A qualified guarantor must have a social security number, a “Risk Score” of 680 or above and verifiable income of at least four times the monthly rent. Guarantors will fill out an application and submit a *non-refundable $18 screening processing fee. (*fees are not charged for Portland properties).

Move in Costs:  We require first month’s rent, last month’s rent, and a security deposit to be paid before moving in.

Pet Policy:  We permit up to two pets in an apartment when the renter qualifies and agrees to the terms of our pet addendum. The monthly fee is $50 for cats and $75 for a dog. Dogs may need to be met and approved (by our staff) prior to accepting an application/holding deposit. Please read the full Pet Policy to obtain more information.

We are an equal opportunity housing provider and fully comply with the Federal Fair Housing Act. We do not discriminate against any person based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, sexual orientation, or national origin. We also comply with all state and local fair housing laws.

To prevent overcrowding and undue stress on plumbing and other building systems, we restrict the number of people who may reside in an apartment. In determining these restrictions, we adhere to all applicable fair housing laws.

Dishonesty or inappropriate/threatening behavior towards a Port Property employee, agent, or resident during the application process will be grounds for denial.

Honesty is the best policy! By submitting your application for an apartment, you are agreeing that you have completed it to the best of your knowledge. Should we find that you have been dishonest during any part of the application process, we reserve the right to deny your application. Please make sure to list all rental references on your application and answer all questions thoroughly.

Our apartments are rented on a first come, first served basis.

We evaluate every rental application in the following manner:

1. Each prospective tenant (18 years or older) needs to complete and submit a rental application and pay a non-refundable $50 application fee per applicant/guarantor.
2. We will process your application through our screening process, which will check your credit report, criminal history, rental background, and verification of proof of income to confirm that you fully meet our criteria. Based on this screening criteria, you will either be approved, conditional with the need of a qualified guarantor or denied for the apartment.
3. If your application is approved, we will reserve the apartment for you for a period of 24 hours. During this time, the unit is taken off the market, and no other applicants can apply. To continue your hold on the apartment, we must receive a signed lease agreement from all parties along with a payment of $300 as a deposit that will go towards your security deposit. Otherwise, we may deem the apartment unrented and place the listing back on the market.

4. If you choose not to rent this apartment within this initial 24-hour period, we will issue you a check refunding the holding deposit you have paid within 14 business days.
5. If you choose not to rent this apartment after the 24-hour period has expired and have signed the lease agreement, you will forfeit your holding deposit. If the apartment re-rents and a new tenant begins their lease within 30 days of what would have been your lease start date, we will refund any monies due to you after the prorated rent is deducted.

To qualify for an apartment with Port Property, you must meet the following criteria:

INCOME: Your verifiable gross monthly income (before taxes) should be at least two times the monthly rent. For example, if you are looking to rent a $1200 apartment, you must show a monthly income of $2400. If you don’t meet our income criteria, you may need to provide a qualified guarantor. Please see below for guarantor criteria.

RENTAL HISTORY: Negative rental history, such as a past eviction, owing a previous landlord money, or being sued by a prior landlord will result in your application being declined.

CREDIT HISTORY/BACKGROUND CHECK: We use a software system that determines a “Risk Score” for each applicant.  This “Risk Score” is determined by running a credit and criminal background check on every person over the age of 18 residing in our apartments. If a felony of any kind or a criminal charge/misdemeanor involving dishonesty or violence is found in your background check, or if you are on a sex offender registry, your application will be denied. To obtain a copy of your screening report, please visit RentGrow.com.

Risk Score:  Applicants with a “Risk Score” between 501-569, or no credit history, require a guarantor to rent an apartment. We cannot approve an applicant with a Risk Score of 500 or below, with or without a guarantor.

If applicant doesn’t have a Social Security Number:

1. Verification of credit score in your country of origin. Please have your bank institute from your country of origin send verification of your credit score directly to Port Property at admin@portproperty.com or fax 207-761-0770. We will determine the strength of your credit score based on your country of origin’s credit range.
2. Verification of one of the following:
   • Certificate of Eligibility for Exchange Visitor Status DS2019 and Visa and/or Passport – must show work placement and/or offer agreement
   • Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant (Student) I-20 and Visa and/or Passport– must show income for school costs and housing

Security Deposit:  Your security deposit amount will range from $300 to one full month’s rent. This scale is based on your “Risk Score.” A lower “Risk Score” will result in a higher security deposit, while a higher “Risk Score” results in a lower security deposit. One full month’s rent is required for all applicants without a Social Security Number or with a “Risk Score” between 569-619.

Guarantor Requirements:  If you do not meet the income, rental or credit history criteria mentioned above, you may still qualify for an apartment by having a third party guarantee your lease. A qualified guarantor must have a social security number, a “Risk Score” of 680 or above and verifiable income of at least four times the monthly rent. Your guarantor will fill out an application and submit a non-refundable $50 application fee.

Move in Costs:  We require, including but not limited to: first month’s rent, security deposit, admin fee of $100, along with any applicable costs associated with your property/unit to be paid before moving in.

Pet Policy:  We permit up to two pets in an apartment when the renter qualifies and agrees to the terms of our pet addendum. The monthly fee is $15 for cats and $25 for Dogs. A non-refundable pet fee of $250 is required prior to move-in. Dogs will need to be met and approved (by our staff) prior to move in date. Please read the full Pet Policy to obtain more information.

We are an equal opportunity housing provider and fully comply with the Federal Fair Housing Act. We do not discriminate against any person based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, sexual orientation, or national origin. We also comply with all state and local fair housing laws.

To prevent overcrowding and undue stress on plumbing and other building systems, we restrict the number of people who may reside in an apartment. In determining these restrictions, we adhere to all applicable fair housing laws.

Dishonesty or inappropriate/threatening behavior towards a Port Property employee, agent, or resident during the application process will be grounds for denial.

Honesty is the best policy! By submitting your application for an apartment, you are agreeing that you have completed it to the best of your knowledge. Should we find that you have been dishonest during any part of the application process, we reserve the right to deny your application. Please make sure to list all rental references on your application and answer all questions thoroughly.