Salt Lake City

Housing Stability Division

801-535-7712 | HousingStability@slc.gov

Before You Move In

Before You Move In


Need help with housing?

By clicking the button above, you will be taken to an intake form and connected with a housing navigator.

You can also call 801-893-3779 or visit 501 East 1700 South Monday through Friday 8 am – 5 pm.

Have concerns with a landlord or business?

Landlords are business owners. If you feel that you have been treated unfairly or unethically, you can file a complaint with Salt Lake City.

Poor or Unsafe Housing?

Landlords are required to keep housing units to certain standards. If you feel that your housing may not meet health and safety standards, request an inspection from a City building inspector.


Finding a new place to live can be stressful

The information on this page is meant to help you find housing that meets your needs and be in control of your situation. This information is based on Utah law and every state is different. If you need legal advice, please reach out to an attorney. If you have a very low income, you may qualify for free or low-cost legal aid from a Utah Legal Services or the modest means program from the Utah bar.

Do your homework first

Do your homework first

It’s best not to apply unless you are pretty sure that you want to rent the apartment or home. Once you sign a lease and pay your deposit, it can be difficult to re-negotiate the terms or back out of the lease. The best plan is to research the landlord, tour the property in person, and read a copy of the lease before signing anything or sending any money.

Landlords are required to list the criteria that they use to screen tenants. Before you apply and pay an application fee, make sure that you meet the criteria for the rental. These requirements may include things like criminal history, credit, income, employment, or rental history.

Landlords must tell you their tenant selection criteria

Landlords must tell you their tenant selection criteria

Tenant selection criteria are like a checklist for a landlord. If you, the applicant, fit all their criteria, they may rent to you. Landlords are required to provide applicants with written notice of their selection criteria prior to accepting payment. For example, the landlord may deny an application because of the applicant’s criminal background, rental history, income, or credit score. With the notice that they are required to give, you can get a good idea before applying if you will be eligible for the rental. You may be asked to sign a document that says that you received the notice of the landlord’s selection criteria.

Check your credit

Check your credit

When you submit a rental application, the landlord will probably check your credit record. So, before you start looking for a place, it is good to know where you stand. There are three big credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax, Transunion). The official website where you can get a free copy of your credit report once a year is www.annualcreditreport.com. Many landlords check credit ratings with one or more of these companies in addition to using tenant screening services, like Tenant Tracker, that look at criminal and eviction records.

What is an application fee?

What is an application fee?

An application fee is usually a nonrefundable fee that you may be required to pay when you submit your application. It usually covers the cost of processing your application and doing a background check. Landlords should only charge an application fee if the unit is available.

You can submit a refund request to the Utah Application Dispute Fund that is operated by the Utah Multifamily Housing Association. (Note: the Dispute Fund is not operated or endorsed by the City. The City does not make any guarantees that you will receive a refund if you submit a request, even if you qualify for one).

Landlords are required to disclose all rent and fees for a unit

Landlords are required to disclose all rent and fees for a unit

Utah State law requires that landlords provide a “good faith” estimate of the rent and all fees that are associated with renting their unit before they accept an application fee or other payment from a prospective renter. This rental expense disclosure must include: the monthly rent amount and the type and amount of each fixed, non-rent expense included in the lease (gas, electric, water, common-area maintenance, etc.). The landlord also needs to disclose the requirements and process for receiving a refund for certain fees.

What is a security deposit?

What is a security deposit?

A security deposit is money a tenant pays to a landlord before the tenant moves in. It typically is used to provide some protection to a landlord in case of damage to the rented property or for some other failure of a tenant. This may include covering unpaid rent, cleaning costs, and other things agreed to in the lease. If you follow your lease and don’t damage the property, you should get your security deposit back when you move out.

A security deposit is not the same as an application fee. Advanced rent (like first month or last month’s rent) is not a security deposit either.

When you move out of the unit, you are entitled to receive the full security deposit minus any money that the landlord used to repair any damages beyond reasonable wear and tear, other costs and fees provided for in the lease, or cleaning of the unit. The landlord must pay the balance of the security deposit to you within 30 days after you move out. If the landlord makes any deductions from the deposit, they must include a written list that gives details for items they charged you for.

If the landlord does not provide the deposit and/or a list of deductions within 30 days, you can submit a Tenant’s Notice to Provide Deposit Disposition. The landlord must respond to your notice within 5 days. If the landlord fails to respond or comply with this notice, you may need to sue them in small claims court. Through the small claims action, you could get your full deposit back, any advance rent you paid, an extra $1,000, and attorney’s fees if the court finds your landlord acted in bad faith.

To help protect yourself, you should consider taking photos or videos to document every single part of your apartment when you move in and when you move out. Doing this will provide proof of any damage that was there when you moved in and show how things looked when you moved out.

Roommates

Roommates

Most leases do not allow you to sublet your apartment without prior consent. Subletting means renting out all or a portion of your apartment to someone else, for short periods of time or long-term. Subletting is not the same as having roommates. Make sure that you know what your lease says about subletting and comply with the terms in your lease. If you have problems with a roommate, things can get messy. The Austin Tenants Council has created a Renting Together Contract to help you and your roommate(s) get on and stay on the same page during your time renting together. You can edit parts of this contract to fit the needs of you and your roommate(s). You and your roommate(s) can fill out and sign the form before you move in together.