Welcome to Brian Carlson

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices. Your Trusted Partner in Rental Property Management!

At Brian Carlson, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, we are committed to providing top-notch property management services while ensuring that we maintain the highest standards of tenant selection. Our rental criteria are designed to create a seamless and fair process for both property owners and prospective tenants.

Please review the guidelines below before application. The guidelines below are the full guidelines. 

HARD NO’S 

Evictions, arson charges and/or drug distribution/drug trafficking/possession with intent to sell, outstanding past utility company debt, outstanding past landlord debt, current missed payments for leases or bills. 

You cannot currently be past due on any bills other than medical bills in the last 24 months. 

We are very understanding of previous life experiences but prefer no felony charges in the 24 months prior to application, and no repeat drug or domestic violence charges. 

If you have any charges whatsoever that involve crimes involving children or animals, we will not approve an application that includes children or animals. 

We check your employment and references, so please do not provide fake references or employment details. It is a waste of your money and our time.  

APPLICATION DETAILS: *Application Fee is $50.00 per adult. 

*About 50% of our home placements have pre-applied. It takes 2-5 days for approval because we require one job referral and one former landlord referral. Sometimes employers and landlords take a few days to get back to us. Please notify your landlord and/or employer that we will be calling. 

*Each person 18 or over intending to live in the home must apply. 

You will need to upload the following, so have them ready when you apply. You can attach them to your application, or email them to info@rounddoor.net 

Your Driver's License /or State ID /or Passport 

Your last 2 paystubs 

If you are self-employed, we will need 2 months of bank statements showing your deposits. The income must be shown going into your account. 

If you work under the table somewhere, you will need to show 2 months of bank statements showing regular deposits. The income must be shown going into your account. We do not accept letters from employers stating your pay. The money must be shown going into an account. 

Your SSI / Disability proof of income-only if you are counting it toward income. 

Health Insurance Card-Only if you are on Medicare or Medicaid and are counting it toward income. Please block out numbers. We are just looking for proof of coverage so we can credit your income with it. 

Proof of food stamp / SNAP benefits- Only if you are counting it toward income. 

Proof of child support -Only if you are counting it toward income. 

If there are any incidents in your past that you feel merit explanation, please add them to the application. 

If you have trouble uploading the documents, e-mail them to info@rounddoor.net  

and we will get them uploaded for you. 

PLEASE NOTE: You must have your deposit ready when you apply. 

RENTAL   CRITERIA 

SELF-PAY TENANTS: Must make 3 times the rent in gross income. Minimum credit score requirement of 575. If your credit is under 575, we will consider your application, but you will need a total of 3 months’ rent to move in. First month’s rent, last month’s rent, and security deposit. 

If under a  575 you may be required to put down the first and last month’s rent in addition to the security deposit. 

If your credit is under 600, you are not eligible to rent a unit exceeding $1500.00 a month. 

3rd Parties- SECTION 8 / CMHA / INTEGRATED SERVICES / FAITH MISSION: Must have an income of 2x the rent in gross income and a voucher for the full rent. 

We do include SNAP benefits, Medicaid, and PIPP as income, so put those numbers in your application. You will need to provide documents showing the benefits. Here’s how we weigh that. Food stamps at actual value. Medicaid insurance is $100 for one person and $200 for 2 or more family members. PIPP at actual credit. 

Example: 

Social security of $800.00 

Snap Food Benefits: $200.00(the amount of snap you get a month.) 

Medicaid: $100.00(your healthcare) 

PIPP: $55.00 

Total income is $1,155.00 

If you have the above income, and you had a CMHA voucher / Faith Mission / Integrated Services / Or other agency paying 100% of your rent you would qualify for $577.50 a month rent. $1,155.00 plus $577.50(half of your income) divided by 3. 

If your voucher is for a 3-bedroom home up to $1,200, and the rent is $1,300 a month and CMHA inspects and says they will only pay $1,000 a month for that unit, regardless of your portion, you cannot pay the $300 difference outside of the CMHA program, as that would violate your CMHA agreement. Sometimes a unit is $1,000 a month, and CMHA will say a unit is approved up to $1,000 and your portion of that is $200.00. That is acceptable. 

We do not lower rent amounts for CMHA applicants when the CMHA-approved rent comes in lower than the advertised rent. 

Payments outside the knowledge of CMHA are not allowed, due to CMHA program guidelines and are strictly prohibited. 

   IMPORTANT FAQ’S 

We REQUIRE a former landlord referral unless you qualify for permanent supportive housing via Faith Mission or Integrated Services, in which case the last 2 months’ rent are required to be paid, upfront, by the agency. 

Please make sure the name and address of the owner/property manager for your current residence is listed. Applications with no landlord contact information will NOT BE PROCESSED. Please note, we check the auditor for the owner and track them down to verify the information you provided is correct. 

Please fill out all social media you have. 

EVICTIONS- We do not accept evictions. We count dropped evictions at 50% the weight of a regular eviction. If you have more than one dropped eviction, it counts the same as a full eviction, and you are ineligible to rent from us. We do not accept any eviction filings in the prior 12 months. 

CRIME-We are very understanding about crime records, with the exceptions of arson and drug distribution/drug trafficking/possession with intent to sell. They are hard no’s. This does not mean we accept all other crimes. Repeat domestic violence charges, assault charges, and drug charges are also reasons for denial. We do not accept ANY drug charges within 24 months of application. 

HOW WE CALCULATE INCOME. We use your employment gross pay, social security, disability, SNAP benefits, child support, and your healthcare (only with Medicare / Medicaid) in the calculation. Please make sure you send proof of each. 

NEXT STEPS. Once you have issued an approval, you must pay the $75 lease creation and onboarding fee before we will write a lease for you. Your security deposit is due within 72 hours of lease execution. Please note, that security deposits are not refundable unless you are section 8 and the home does not pass the inspection. 

This is important. A lease is only fully executed when all parties have signed. Until all parties have signed and the required first month’s rent / last month’s rent /security deposit is received the lease is not valid. Note: CMHA leases cannot be fully executed until CMHA has completed inspections and issued the approval. CMHA tenants cannot move in until the day after CMHA approval. That is when CMHA starts to pay on the lease. We do not accept CMHA tenant payments for rent before approval to move in early. There is no guarantee that CMHA will approve ANY house. Owners are not required to make repairs if a unit fails. Please keep that in mind when applying. We don’t want applicants wasting money on applications for homes that will not pass the CMHA inspection. It is a good practice to view the home at an open house before application and see if it visually meets the CMHA standards. Go to: https://cmhanet.com/HCV/PropertyConditions for a checklist you can print and check yourself at the open house. 

Additionally, if you are section 8 and you have been approved for a home, and subsequently, a self-pay person gets approved, you will get bumped if the self-pay person has a move-in date before section 8 inspection approval. We apologize, but sometimes repeated inspections are required and CMHA can take up to 8 weeks to get approved. 

* PLEASE NOTE-We do not wait on third-party payments, such as PRC, Shelter Care Plus, Community Shelter Board, etc. for initial fees.  

HOW LONG DO WE HOLD HOUSES? We do not hold houses. All leases must commence within 14 days of being fully executed and all required pre-payments are made. We accept applications until your lease is fully executed and pre-payments are made. The only exception is if there is still an active lease and you are pre-applying. Your lease may be executed more than 14 days in advance; however, it must start within 14 days of the end of the prior lease. 

*We take credit, criminal, eviction, as well as landlord and job recommendations into account on decisions. 

*The employees holding the open houses are not the decision-makers on applications. 

 Brian Carlson, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices TAKES FAIR HOUSING AND ACCESS TO QUALITY AFFORDABLE HOUSING VERY SERIOUSLY. 

Brian Carlson, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServcies does not discriminate based on ancestry, race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, national origin or military status.”