Rental Applications Reviewer

We manage apartment communities across Ohio and receive a high and growing volume of rental applications, more than one full-time reviewer can keep up with. We're looking for a detail-oriented Applications Reviewer to screen each applicant thoroughly and consistently against our written screening criteria, so we approve qualified residents quickly and catch risks before move-in.

What You'll Do
- Review rental applications end to end in AppFolio, making sure every application is complete and every required document is in.
- Verify income and ability to pay: review pay stubs, offer letters, bank statements, benefit letters and other proof of income, and calculate income-to-rent ratios.
- Review tenant screening reports (credit, eviction history, and criminal background) and apply our written screening criteria consistently to every applicant.
- Spot red flags: altered or inconsistent documents, mismatched names or employers, unverifiable income, prior evictions or unpaid balances owed to landlords.
- Call employers and previous landlords to verify employment, income and rental history.
- Call or message applicants to request missing documents and explain next steps.

- Summarize each file with a clear recommendation (approve, approve with conditions such as a higher deposit or co-signer, or decline) and the specific criteria behind it, for final sign-off by the Leasing Manager.
- Keep application status notes current so the leasing team always knows where each file stands.
- Handle applicant information confidentially and follow fair housing rules on every file.

Turnaround Times
- Priority reviews: files flagged as urgent by a Leasing Manager are reviewed first and returned as soon as possible.
- Complete applications: returned with a recommendation within 2 hours of receiving the file.
- Incomplete applications: initial review within 1 hour of receiving the file and missing documents requested right away, then follow up by phone and message and finish the file within 72 hours

- At least 1 year of screening or verification experience, such as tenant screening, background checks, employment or income verification, KYC/compliance review, or loan and mortgage processing.
- Ability to read and interpret US credit, eviction and criminal background reports.
- Excellent spoken and written English; clear, professional and easily understood on the phone with US applicants, employers and landlords.
- AppFolio experience preferred; training provided.
- Strong eye for detail and ability to recognize altered or fraudulent documents.
- Working knowledge of US Fair Housing laws; LIHTC (affordable housing) knowledge is a plus. You'll complete our Fair Housing and LIHTC training before reviewing files.
- Reliable computer with a second monitor, high-speed internet, a quiet work area and a headset.

- Backup power and a backup internet connection so you can keep working during outages.
- Willing to use our time-tracking tool during all working hours.
- Flexible to work extra hours, including weekends, when volume is high.
- Willing to sign an NDA and follow our data security rules: work only on a secure, password-protected computer that no one else uses, never download or store applicant documents on personal devices, and never share applicant information outside our systems.
- Comfortable working in Slack, Quo (formerly OpenPhone) and Google Workspace alongside AppFolio.

Nice to Have
- Real estate or property management background, especially US residential leasing.
- Experience with other property management software such as Buildium, Rent Manager or Entrata.
- Experience with screening services such as TransUnion SmartMove or RentGrow.

Trial Period

Employment begins with a paid 30-day trial period. Continued engagement is subject to satisfactory performance.

Company: VSF Rentals (multifamily property management, Ohio, USA)

Type: Remote, full-time contractor

Hours: 40 hours/week minimum, US Eastern business hours. Extra hours, including weekends, are available during busy leasing periods and paid at your hourly rate.

Rate: $8–$10 USD/hour based on experience, paid weekly via Wise