Tenant Screening in Virginia

FCRA-compliant tenant screening for landlords in Virginia — serving Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Richmond, Newport News and every other Virginia market. Reports start at $24.99 with no subscription. Virginia-specific reporting-law overlays are applied automatically before the landlord sees any record.

What landlords in Virginia can include in a screening report

• Credit report and score — TransUnion VantageScore plus tradeline detail.
• Criminal background — nationwide criminal record search with Virginia-specific look-back limits applied.
• Housing records — sealed, dismissed, and time-barred housing-court records filtered before they reach you.
• Income verification — optional payroll + bank-link verification via Pinwheel.
• AI landlord reference call — optional AI agent calls the applicant’s prior landlord and produces a structured summary.

Housing records reporting in Virginia

Virginia limits housing-records reporting and provides for expungement of certain unlawful-detainer cases.

Statutory citation: Va. Code § 8.01-130.01

How reporting limits interact with what you may lawfully consider is covered in what landlords can screen for and the investigative consumer report explainer.

Criminal-record reporting in Virginia

Federal FCRA 7-year limit applies. Virginia has expanded sealing rights.

Fair housing in Virginia

The Virginia Fair Housing Law applies in addition to the federal Fair Housing Act. Source of income is a protected class statewide in Virginia — landlords may not refuse to consider an applicant solely because they intend to pay with a housing-choice voucher or similar lawful source.

Notable Virginia considerations

Source of income is a protected class statewide.

What Virginia law limits when you screen and rent

These are the statutory limits most likely to affect a Virginia landlord at the application stage, compiled from state statutes and reviewed August 2026. Where a limit could not be tied to a specific statute it is left out rather than estimated. Statutes change and local ordinances often add limits your state does not — this is a starting point for your own check, not legal advice, and not a substitute for counsel licensed in Virginia.

Rental application / screening fee

Virginia caps a nonrefundable rental application fee at $50, exclusive of actual out-of-pocket costs paid to a third party for background or credit checks; HUD-regulated and public housing units are capped at $32. Citation: Va. Code § 55.1-1203

Security deposit limit

Virginia bars a landlord from demanding or receiving a security deposit, however denominated, in an amount or value exceeding two months' periodic rent. Citation: Va. Code § 55.1-1226

Criminal history (fair-chance housing)

Virginia has no statewide fair-chance housing law; landlords may consider conviction history, subject only to the Virginia Fair Housing Law and federal disparate-impact limits. Citation: No statewide statute; cf. Va. Code § 36-96.3 (Virginia Fair Housing Law)

Local ordinances frequently add limits your state statute does not — check your city and county before you set an application fee or a deposit.

How RentalApplication.ai works for Virginia landlords

1. You start a screening at rentalapplication.ai/apply. Enter the applicant’s name and email; pick the reports you want.
2. The applicant gets an email with a secure link, completes the application, and authorizes the screening (FCRA § 1681b(b)(2)).
3. The applicant pays at the moment of submission (or you can land-lord-pay).
4. Reports are delivered to you in minutes (credit) to a few hours (housing/criminal). State-law overlays are applied before the landlord sees any record.
5. If you decline based on the report, we generate the FCRA § 1681m adverse-action notice for you.

This page is an informational summary, not legal advice. State and local landlord-tenant law changes frequently — verify against current statute and local counsel before relying on this content. RentalApplication.ai is a reseller of consumer reports under FCRA § 1681a(u) and does not make tenancy decisions. The landlord (the “end user”) is the party who decides whether to approve or deny an application.