Owners, managers, and/or leasing agents shall not be required to perform or require lessees to submit to criminal background checks. It is, however, recommended that all prospective lessees of rental residential property be required to submit to criminal background checks, credit checks, and checks for past evictions prior to entering into a lease agreement. The decision whether or not to lease to a tenant should not be based solely on the fact that the prospective tenant has been convicted of a crime, without further inquiry as to whether or not the arrest record actually reflects that person's conduct. Other factors to consider from a prospective tenant's arrest record, when deciding to lease to him or her, is how old the records might be, or whether the conduct is relevant to the person's current ability to be a good tenant. Landlords should not impose strict bans on prospective tenants on the basis of the fact that they have a criminal background without making an individualized assessment of the circumstances surrounding the offenses on the person's record and giving the person an opportunity to explain the details of the arrest and/or conviction if any.
(Ord. 18-32, passed 9-11-18)