Our Disclosures

THE APPLICATION FEE OF $45.00 PER ADULT IS NON-REFUNDABLE

Each adult 18 and over must complete a separate online application. It is in your best interest to read and fully understand our rental criteria to ensure that you meet the rental requirements before applying.

NOTE: If you are a group, we will not begin the screening process until all online applications for the group have been submitted.

APPLICATION PROCESS AND SCREENING CRITERIA

SilverTop Property Management is committed to conducting business in accordance with Federal and State Fair Housing laws. Each occupant 18 and over must complete an online application and pay the $45.00 application fee. Our screening process looks at a combination of factors, including but not limited to:

• Credit History

• Employment Verification and History

• Income Verification

• Rental Verification and History

• Criminal Background Check

• Terrorist Database Search

• Animal Criteria

Identification

Each applicant is required to provide a copy of a legible government issued photo identification card.

Income & Employment Verification

Income is verified through various documents including pay stubs, bank statements, earnings statements, tax returns, etc. Self-employed applicants are required to submit at least 2 years of tax returns (first 2 pages for each year) and 3 recent months of business bank statements. Your employment history should reflect at least 6 months with your current employer. Transfers or relocations must have correspondence showing an accepted job offer. Any verification fees required by the employer must be paid by applicant.

Rental Verification & History

We require verifiable residence history for at least 2 years. Applicants are responsible for providing information including the names, addresses, and phone numbers of landlords with the dates of tenancy for the previous 2 years. Applicants should also notify their previous landlords and advise them that a rental verification will be made. Home ownership will be verified from a current credit report and MLS reports. Any evictions in your rental history will severely lower your chances of being approved. All extenuating circumstances will be considered and may lead to a maximum security deposit and participation in tenant programs.

Credit History

We will obtain a copy of your screening report and FICO score from Buildium (RealPage) software utilizing TransUnion. You cannot provide your own credit report; we are required to obtain this information ourselves. Favorable credit histories and scores will give you a higher chance of being approved. Any applicant with a bankruptcy in the past two years will not qualify.

Multiple Applicants in Group

All applicants will be screened and given consideration as an overall group. If applicants with strong credit profiles apply with weaker applicants, we consider the whole group and base our decisions on a combination of factors. One strong credit profile in the group does not automatically guarantee an approval.

Criminal, Sex Offense, and Terrorist Database Check

We check these databases for all applicants 18 and over. As a precaution to the safety of other residents and neighbors we do not rent to any person required to register as a sex offender. Circumstances related to criminal convictions are evaluated on an individual basis. Criminal backgrounds involving violent crimes, prostitution, domestic violence, the illegal possession of weapons, or the sale or manufacturing of illegal substances can be grounds for denial. We do our best to evaluate all circumstances fairly and objectively. Provide as much detail as possible concerning any criminal conviction.

Errors & Omissions

Every effort is made to provide you with reliable and accurate information regarding the home you are applying for. However, changes can and do happen to cause inaccurate information to be accidentally presented. We encourage all tenants to verify schools, allowable pets, expected features, or any Homeowner Association concerns prior to signing a lease agreement. Any information posted in our printed and online advertisement does not constitute a written agreement or guarantee of the facts stated.

TENANT PROGRAMS

Thank you for your interest in our rental. We understand it is an important decision and you will be signing contracts and making a big commitment, so we wanted to take some time to explain our programs and policies. This document does not replace a thorough and complete reading of our lease agreement, lease addendum, or program disclosures, but here is a short explanation of these programs.

WE ENCOURAGE YOU PARTICIPATE IN ONE OF OUR RESIDENT BENEFIT PACKAGES

Resident Benefits Package: Limited or Complete

You will be billed monthly $80 for the Complete Resident Benefits, $40 a month for the Limited Package or $20 for the Basic Package. We provide these programs to make your rental experience better and limit your exposure to potential damages while renting with us. You must participate in the Basic, but the other options provide more services to you at a lower cost.

• Tenant Liability Insurance –Tenant must provide evidence of Legal Liability Insurance or Renter’s Insurance prior to move-in. If Tenant fails to provide evidence of insurance, or the policy does not remain in effect, you will automatically be enrolled in the Tenant Liability Insurance program offered through our partner insurance agency and pay a monthly premium and convenience fee. This policy provides $100,000 of coverage with no deductible but does not cover Renter's Insurance.

• Tenant Liability & Renter’s Insurance - The $100,000 required Legal Liability Insurance Policy is included in the plan. There is no deductible and the beneficiary of the policy is the owner. If you damage the property, you are covered. We can also include $20,000 in content coverage with a $500 deductible paid by the tenant. 

• Delivery of Replacement Air Filters – You must maintain your rental property. We expect the landlord to repair any systems that fail, but if that failure is caused by you because you did not provide proper maintenance, you may be liable for damages. For example, you must replace your air filters when appropriate. A clogged $15 filter for the air conditioning or furnace filter can cause thousands of dollars of damage. Also, a clogged filter will cost you in additional electricity costs as your air conditioner or furnace will operate inefficiently. We suggest changing them per manufacturer requirements. But instead going to the local home improvement center and trying to decide on the right sized filter, we have contracted the Second Nature to deliver the appropriate filter(s) to your doorstep. Just replace the filter provided and you will stay in compliance with your lease. 

• Our 5 Tenant Service Levels – You have legal rights and it our job to protect them for you. But we think we should do more than the bare minimum, and as part of this package, we provide additional service levels to you. If we don’t perform as promised in these serice levels, we will waive that month’s benefits package fee:

• 1. Your Property Manager will respond to your call, text or email within 1 business day.

  2. Your Property Manager will meet you at the property within 2 business days for an inspection, property issue or any concern you may have.

  3. Prior to move-out, your Property Manager will meet with you and provide a list of repairs that you must make to avoid any security deposit deductions.

  4. We will return your security deposit, or provide a final accounting, within 14 days of you moving out of the property (Texas law is 21 days).

  5. If you don’t agree with the final disposition of your Security Deposit, you may bring your issue to our “Security Deposit Resolution Committee” comprised of our in-house counsel, owner of the company and a Property Manager unrelated to your property for a second opinion. 

• Access to SilverTopPM Preferred Vendors – We utilize a large of professional and reasonably priced vendors who covet our business. We will give you access to these vendors. 

YOUR OWNER MAY REQUIRE YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THIS PROGRAM

Owner Protection Plan

If directed to by the Owner, we may charge $15 a month to you for the Owner Eviction Protection. If the owner of your property instructs us to, we charge this fee to pay for the costs of a potential future eviction. Although you are paying this fee, it is attached to the property and not a reflection of you as our tenant. We would not be leasing this property to you if we thought you intended to violate the terms of our contract. The fact is, we cannot charge our owner this fee per the Department of Real Estate and must charge our tenants for this program.

YOUR OWNER MAY ALLOW US TO OFFER THE FOLLOWING PROGRAMS TO YOU

Renewal Option Program

As you may know, at the end of your lease, the lease renews on a month-to-month basis unless Landlord or Tenant provides the other party written notice of termination 60-days before the expiration. Your owner may decide to renew and has the option to increase your rent without limit. Many tenants would like to have the option of staying longer than one-year and the security of knowing the maximum their rent may increase. If your owner participates in this program, you can have both. For a $15 monthly fee, as long as you abide by the terms of your lease agreement, you have the right to automatically renew your lease, and the maximum rent increase would be limited to 2% over the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The renewal is valid for one-year and your owner will need to authorize an additional year if you wished to have this renewal option again.

Pet Protection Program

We encourage our owners to be “pet friendly”. If your owner allows you to have a pet in their property, we offer a Pet Protection Program.

Option 1: Tenant Registers Pet with Petscreening.com

You register any potential pet with Petscreening.com. This third-party service charges $20 for the first pet, $15 for additional pets and $0 for service and/or comfort animals. Petscreening.com assigns a rating of 1 to 5 “paws” for each pet (this excludes service/comfort animals).

Broker shall charge tenant the following monthly fee for each pet with the following “paw” score from Petscreening.com:

Option 2: Tenant Agrees to a Flat Monthly Fee

If you wish to avoid the cost and complexity of the Petscreening.com process, there will be a flat $30 monthly fee per pet per month.

Broker shall retain this fee but will guarantee to Owner, that any damages caused by the pets, up to $1,000, above normal wear and tear and exceeding the security deposit, shall be paid by Broker. Owner is not obligated to accept any tenant with pets, and service/comfort animals are exempt from this program.

YOUR OWNER MAY REQUEST US TO HAVE YOU AGREE TO THIS PROGRAM

Priority Owner Program

We offer a program to owners in which we send their monthly rental proceeds before we receive the rent from you. We agree to send their proceeds on the first business day of the month, use the security deposit we have on hand from you to make that payment and once you make your monthly rent, replace those funds. But since we hold your security deposit in trust for the Owner, you must agree to this transfer of funds to the owner.

These programs as designed to protect our client’s investment property better, and to improve the rental experience for you. We will provide disclosure which provide more detail on these programs and your obligations for each.

INFORMATION ON ANIMALS

Animal policies vary from one homeowner to another. Some owners do not permit animals, while others restrict type and/or size of allowable animals. No more than two animals per household are permitted without specific owner’s approval.

Most property insurance companies do not allow certain breeds of dogs, either purebred or mixed. Therefore, dogs fully or partially of the following breeds will be rejected: Pit Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Terriers, Rottweilers, German Shepherds, Presa Canarios, Chows Chows, Doberman Pinschers, Akitas, wolf-hybrids, Mastiffs, Cane Corsos, Great Danes, Alaskan Malamutes, Siberian Huskies, and any combination of these. Tenants may be evicted for misrepresenting any of the above type of dog, as well as for being in possession of any poisonous, dangerous, endangered species or otherwise unauthorized animal. Our animal policies are strictly enforced and may be grounds for eviction. Special consideration is given to “Service Animals” that assist a tenant with special medical needs (proper and current documentation needed for verification). We require, with your application, a picture of each animal that will be on the property.

FEE DISCLOSURE - START OF LEASE

Lease Administration - $95

Applicants will receive their lease electronically and be required to sign electronically. A $95 fee is charged for lease preparation. This covers the costs associated with preparing the legal documents, acquiring the signatures, and collecting the move-in funds.

Lease Renewal Fee - $95

If the owner allows and tenant requests to renew the lease at the end of its term, SilverTop will charge a $95 renewal fee to prepare and execute the addendum to the lease.

Routine Interior Walk-Throughs

SilverTop Property Management conducts periodic walk-throughs of the home you lease. We take pictures of the interior and exterior of the home and we share these pictures with the homeowner. It is understood and accepted by all applicants and tenants that this is a standard procedure for all homes we manage. If you foresee an issue with this procedure you should reconsider applying for one of our homes.

Late Rent Zero Tolerance

Rent is due on the 1st day of each month. If rent is not received by midnight on the 3rd day of the month it is considered late and a $50 fee is charged. There will be an additional $25 fee per day until the rent is paid. We encourage our tenants to pay rent via our online payment system for the most secure and traceable method of payment.

SUMMARY OF KEY POINTS IN THIS DISCLOSURE

• $45.00 Application Fee per adult is NON-REFUNDABLE

• Your application can be canceled or delayed, WITHOUT A REFUND, for failing to abide by the rental criteria, guidelines, and terms stated in this disclosure and the application pages

• Qualifying FICO scores are determined by each Landlord; however, typically a score of less than 620 will not qualify.

• A fee of $95 is charged for lease administration

• An annual renewal fee of $95 if the lease is renewed

• There is NO SMOKING allowed on the property (including the garage or outdoor areas) unless approved in the lease.

• All occupants must be disclosed on the application regardless of age

• All animals must be disclosed on the application

• Tenants may participate in the Resident Benefit Program as a condition of their lease. The fee is dependent on the level of participation. Tenants are free to carry any additional coverage or insurance in addition to the Resident Benefit Program.