[Mpls] Application Fees

[Socialist2001 at cs.com]

In a message dated 7/28/2004 9:42:30 AM Central Daylight Time, 
Socialist2001 at cs.com writes:

<< As a renter I never paid an application fee for a background check without 
 also signing a lease agreement. >>

I am fairly certain that I refused to pay an application fee and did not 
apply for a lease on at least one occasion for the reasons stated below.  And 
there was one occasion where I refused to pay an application fee without also 
signing a lease, and the landlord agreed to sign a lease on the spot because my 
wife and I were "the right kind people." In my opinion, landlords should not 
have the right to discriminate on any basis but a tenants stated qualifications 
on the application form. They should rent to the first qualified applicant who 
is ready to pay first and last months rent, etc. The city should aggressively 
enforce fair housing laws (including proactive methods, like the formation of 
survey teams) And landlords should lose their license to operate in 
Minneapolis if found guilty of illegal discrimination. There is really no such thing as 
illegal discrimination except to the extent there are mechanisms to enforce 
anti-discrimination laws.
 
<< If a landlord wants you to pay an application fee, but doesn't want to 
sign a 
 lease agreement based on the information you provide on the application 
form, 
 it is quite reasonable to suspect that the landlord has no intention of 
being 
 your landlord and is merely picking your pocket. If a wannabe renter reports 
 sufficient income and otherwise meets the criteria, why not rent to them on 
 the spot?  Lease agreements typically allow the landlord to back out of the 
 agreement if information provided on the lease application is not accurate, 
so the 
 landlord doesn't have a good reason to not sign a lease agreement on the 
spot 
 with the first, qualified, wannabe tenant who is ready to paid the first and 
 last months rent, security deposit, etc.>>
 
 -Doug Mann, King Field
 Minneapolis school board candidate 
 www.educationright.com