How to rent my house: a complete guide for landlords

Renting out your house is a practical way to turn a property you're paying for into one that pays you. It's also more involved than most first-time landlords expect. Beyond preparing the property and setting the right price, you'll need to advertise effectively, screen applicants, handle compliance when you deny someone, and set up lease and rent collection processes that hold up long-term.

With RentSpree, you can manage the entire process from one account. Create a listing that reaches over a dozen top rental websites, collect applications and run credit and background checks in one dashboard, and start collecting rent online. There’s no subscription required, no paying a property manager every month, and no switching between platforms.

This guide walks through each step of renting your house, including how to stay compliant throughout the process, so nothing surprises you once you sign your first tenant.

Decide whether renting makes sense

Before you list your home, run the numbers. Add up your monthly carrying costs, including:

• Mortgage
• Property taxes
• Landlord insurance
• HOA dues, if you have them
• A reserve for repairs and vacancy

Landlord insurance typically costs about 25% more than a standard homeowner policy, so get a quote before you assume your current premium carries over. Then compare that total against what similar homes near you rent for.

If the average rent covers your costs with room to spare, you have a viable rental. If it falls short, renting can still make sense if you expect the property to appreciate or plan to move back someday, but you should know the gap you're accepting before a tenant moves in.

Consider the non-financial side too. Are you prepared to be someone's landlord? That means responding to repair calls, holding a security deposit according to your state's rules, and treating the house as a business asset rather than your former home.

Learn the rules before you list

Rental housing is regulated at three levels.

Federal law. The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing decisions based on:

• Race
• Color
• Religion
• National origin
• Sex
• Familial status
• Disability

This applies to everything you do as a landlord, from how you write your listing to which questions you ask applicants to how you choose between them. Many states and cities add protected classes on top of the federal list, often including source of income, age, and marital status. Check what applies where your property is located.

State landlord-tenant law. Your state sets the rules for security deposit limits, how quickly deposits must be returned, what you're required to tell tenants before they move in, how much notice you need before entering the property, and how evictions work.

Some states and cities also cap how much you can charge applicants for screening or prohibit passing the fee along entirely. Screening with RentSpree costs $39.99, or $49.99 if you choose to add income verification, and the applicant typically pays when they apply, making screening free for you as the landlord. These prices fall within the screening fee limits for most states that include caps.

Local requirements. Some cities and counties require rental licenses, registration, or pre-rental inspections. If your home belongs to an HOA, read the bylaws before listing. Some associations cap the number of rentals in the community or have their own approval process.

Get the house rent-ready

A rent-ready home is clean, safe, and free of the kind of small problems a tenant would otherwise report in week one. Renovations rarely pay for themselves in rent, but small repairs often do. Deep clean, handle the leaky faucet and the sticking door, repaint where the walls show wear, and remove anything personal. Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to make sure they are working. Every state has requirements for detectors in rental properties, so check what applies to yours.

Then photograph the house in good light, room by room, plus the exterior. Your photos do more to attract potential tenants than your listing description will.

Price your home against the local market

It might seem like the rental price you set would be based on your monthly mortgage payment, but that isn’t the case. Tenants pay market rate, and market rate comes from comparable rentals. That means homes of similar size, condition, and location currently listed or recently leased near you.

Browse active listings to get a feel for the range, then look at what's actually renting compared to what's not. A home priced above market doesn't earn you more; it sits vacant, and a month of vacancy usually costs more than the difference you were holding out for. If you price under market, you might fill fast but will leave income on the table every month.

If you'd rather skip the legwork and rely on solid data, RentSpree's Rent Estimate gives you a suggested price range built from local comparables, along with vacancy rates and market trends for the area. For $19.99 per property, it uses the same information a property manager would use to set your price, without the management contract.

List the property and advertise it widely

A great rental listing is specific and honest. Include:

• Number of bedrooms and bathrooms
• Square footage
• Monthly rent and deposit amounts
• Availability date
• Pet policy
• Two or three features that genuinely distinguish the home

Where you post matters as much as what you write. Applicants search across many platforms, so if you’re only listing on a few sites, you’re only reaching a fraction of potential applicants. With RentSpree, you create the listing once and it's advertised across more than a dozen top rental websites for free, including Zillow, Apartments.com, and Rent.com, and 11 more. Your application link is attached to every listing, so every application lands in one dashboard.

Screen every applicant the same way

Screening gives you verified information about an applicant's credit, rental history, and background so you can make an informed decision. It’s one of the most important steps for finding the right tenant.

Start with a complete application. A thorough rental application should collect:

• Identity and contact details
• Previous addresses and landlord contacts
• Employment and income information
• References

Use the application to look for patterns like how long applicants stay in one place, why they leave, and whether their income comfortably covers the rent. RentSpree's online rental application collects all of this information in a standard format and is free for landlords to use. When every applicant submits the same information the same way, comparing them fairly is straightforward.

Run the reports. A tenant screening report adds verified data to what the applicant self-reported. Through RentSpree, screening is powered by TransUnion and includes:

• A credit report with ResidentScore®, which is a score built specifically for rental screening that predicts rental outcomes more accurately than a traditional credit score
• A criminal background check that draws on national registries and local court records
• Eviction history from more than 25 million records nationwide, so prior evictions filed in other jurisdictions aren't missed

Reports typically come back within two hours.

Verify income at the bank. Many landlords still verify income by reviewing pay stubs and bank statements, but that approach has a growing problem. Convincing fakes can now be generated in minutes with AI tools, so a document that looks real may not be. An NMHC survey found that 84% of housing providers who experienced fraud saw applicants submitting fake income documentation.

RentSpree's bank-verified income verification takes those documents out of the process entirely. The applicant connects their bank account through Finicity, a Mastercard company, and the verification pulls deposit data directly from the financial institution. That means you’re not manually reviewing documents or worrying about whether they’re fake. You can add bank-connected income verification to any screening request for $10, typically paid by the applicant.

Apply the same standard to everyone. Decide your screening criteria before you review any applications. Common criteria include a minimum income relative to rent, a minimum credit score, and a clean rental history. Having written criteria that you apply consistently protects applicants from discrimination and protects you from fair housing complaints.

Approve or deny applicants the right way

Approving an applicant is a big responsibility, but so is denying one. When you deny an application based on information in a screening report, the Fair Credit Reporting Act requires you to send the applicant a notice. That notice must state that the denial was based on their report, provide the screening company's contact information, and explain the applicant's right to dispute the report's contents.

RentSpree handles this step for you. You approve or decline applicants from your dashboard, and the required notices are generated and sent automatically, so compliance is handled without extra work on your end.

In markets including Cook County (IL), Washington, D.C., Montgomery County (MD), Detroit (MI), and New Jersey, local law requires you to conditionally accept an applicant before viewing their criminal background check. That means you review credit, eviction, and income first, then unlock the criminal report. RentSpree builds this two-step process into the screening workflow so you follow the required order without managing it separately.

Sign a lease that protects both sides

When you create your lease, make sure it includes:

• Rent amount and due date
• Lease length
• Security deposit amount and the conditions for getting it back
• Late fees
• Who handles which repairs
• Rules on pets, smoking, and subletting

Your lease also has to comply with your state's law. Start with a state-specific template and have an attorney review the lease before you send it to your new tenant.

Once the lease is ready, you, the tenant, and any co-signers will need to sign it. E-signing is the simplest and fastest way, especially if the tenant is moving from far away, or has a co-signer that does not live in the area. If you sign up for Landlord PRO, which costs $6.99 per month billed annually, you can upload your lease, place signature fields, send it for e-signature, and collect the security deposit online alongside the signed lease. The signed lease is stored with the application, screening report, and payment history for the property, so the record is in one place when you need it a year later. The same subscription includes financial reporting and the ability to earn up to 2.5% APY on rent payouts through RentSpree Money, so the account you use to manage the lease also tracks your rental income.

Set up rent collection that runs itself

Collecting rent every month doesn’t have to mean chasing down payments or even sending manual reminders. Online rent collection lets your tenant schedule automatic payments while reminders and late fees handle themselves.

RentSpree collects security deposits, one-time fees, and recurring rent. On the free plan, there's a $3 processing fee per recurring rent payment, while Landlord PRO includes free rent payment collection. Tenants pay nothing for bank transfers and 3% for credit or debit card transactions. RentSpree also offers credit reporting for on-time payments, which can help your tenant build their credit history. That gives your renter a reason to prioritize your rent check.

Start renting your house

Before handing over the keys, walk through the property with your tenant and document its condition with a dated, signed checklist and photos. That record is what separates normal wear and tear from damage when the tenancy ends.You’ll also need to confirm that utilities are transferred, agree on a move-in date, and make sure the first month's rent and deposit are collected.

Frequently asked questions

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