Make a Nebraska Rental Application

The Nebraska Rental Application Process

Writing a Nebraska rental application form is an important part of being a landlord or property manager because it's a form that you'll use to screen potential renters to determine whether you should rent to them. It can also specify the amount of security deposit you'll charge and whether you allow pets.

Creating a rental application form requires that you have a section that collects certain information from the applicant. If you plan to run a credit history or background check on the potential tenant, remember to include an authorization at the bottom of the application form that allows you to do so.

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A Sample Nebraska Rental Application Form with Examples for Each Step

Each section should use blank spaces to give the applicant room to provide answers to the requested information.

• The first section requests personal information about the applicant: their full legal name and their date of birth. If the applicant is married or part of a legal union, you should decide whether both applicants may be on the same application or if each should complete a form. If both may be listed, ensure there are enough blank spaces throughout the entire rental application for both parties. Also include spaces for a cell phone number, work number, and email address.
• Include a space for the applicant's social security number if you plan to run a credit check or background check.
• The next section should be for the applicant's rental history. Start with their current rental. The spaces should request the applicant's current full address (including their city, state, and zip code), the contact information for their current landlord or property management company, how long they've lived at the property, and the amount of monthly rent they pay. Leave blank spaces that allow the applicant to provide additional history if they've moved several times over the last few years.
• The next section is the employment history section. You'll use blank spaces to collect information about the applicant's employment status. Begin with their current employer: the name of their employer, the employer's full address, the applicant's job title, how long the applicant has worked for the employer, the supervisor’s name, and either the supervisor's contact information or the phone number for human resources. You'll also want to include additional spaces to collect employment history for the last few years.
• You also need to collect information about the applicant's income sources. Include the amount of income, type of income (such as a paycheck or disability payment), and payment frequency (weekly, biweekly, or monthly).
• Ask whether the potential tenant has a checking or savings account and which bank or credit union manages those accounts.
• The next section should get a description of the applicant's vehicles, including year, make, model, and color, as well as how many vehicles they own. Vehicle information is particularly important if your rental property relies on parking passes or has limited parking.
• Request contact information for an emergency contact. 
• Create a section that gathers the name and age of each person who will live with the applicant. 
• Ask whether the applicant has pets and, if so, how many, what type, and the size of the pets.
• After the authorization, include a blank space for the applicant's signature and the date.

Rental Application Resources for Tenants in Nebraska

As a renter who is a party to a residential lease agreement, it may feel like the landlord has all of the power and you're stuck with whatever happens. That's not true. Both the landlord and tenant have rights as well as responsibilities. Here are some links that can provide helpful information and resources:

• Legal Aid of Nebraska offers a free PDF of the Landlord and Tenant Handbook, a plain English explanation of the rights and responsibilities of landlords and tenants. It also includes helpful phone numbers, what to consider before you sign a rental agreement, what to do if you can't get the landlord to make repairs, and what you should do if your landlord locks you out of the rental property.
• Legal Aid of Nebraska also offers assistance to renters having issues with their landlord. They provide information, referrals, advice, self-help options, and legal representation for renters who meet the low-income requirements.
• Community Action Partnership for Lancaster and Saunders Counties provides free access to various legal forms and notices.
• Nebraska College of Law offers a civil law clinic that assists renters who meet their qualifications.
• The Milton R. Abrahams Legal Clinic at Creighton University School of Law helps renters as well.

Nebraska Rental Application Laws

The law in the State of Nebraska dictates that the most that a landlord or property manager may charge for a deposit is the equivalent of one (1) month’s rent as a security deposit. The law caps the security deposit at one and one-half month’s rent (1.5) for tenants with pets. Once a tenant moves out, the landlord must return the security deposit to him or her within 14 days of vacating the premises (Chapter 76, Section 1416 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes).