Free Maine Rental Application Form
To secure a reliable tenant, a Maine Rental Application Form is an important document. It captures potential tenants' sensitive personal and financial details to help you assess any financial risk accurately. This document can help you handle applicant consent and data appropriately.
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What Is a Maine Residential Rental Application?
Using a Maine rental application allows you to screen a tenant before formally signing a lease agreement with them.
The document is also known as a "tenant application," "rental lease application," "lease application," or an "application for rental property." Furthermore, each renter over 18 that will occupy the residence must complete their own individual tenant form.
Having a prospective tenant complete an ME rental application is an important step for real estate owners when making a final decision on whom to rent a property to.
This legal document allows you to assess the income, background, and rental history of the applicant before entering a binding contract to ensure no issues arise once the tenancy begins.
Maine Rental Application Sample
It’s sensible to look over the template of a Maine rental application before starting your own. This can help to give you a better idea of what your final form will look like and the kind of information you’ll need to add to it.

What to Include in a Maine Rental Application Form
It is important to request the right data from a tenant when asking them to fill in a Maine rental application and to make sure they are properly informed about the contract. This will be essential to make sure you get the right tenant into your property.
Almost all application forms for rental properties request some or all of the following information:
- Personal data
- Rental history
- Employment details
- Income information
- Credit history
- Personal references
- Permission for background checks
Additionally, landlords must provide vital disclosures to ensure that potential residents can safely use the property. They must provide details about:
- The property’s condition
- Potential hazards to the tenant
- Shared utility arrangements
- Rent control rules
- Smoking policy
- The security deposit
- Associated fees
Maine Rental Application Laws
Maine state has various laws regarding the use of rental applications. If your document is not compliant with ME law, you may get sued by the applicant and face legal consequences.
Application Fee
In Maine, landlords are prohibited from charging a general application fee for the review or approval of an application. However, under Maine law (Title 14 § 6030-H), you may charge an applicant for the actual cost of only one of the following: a background check, a credit check, or another screening process. You must notify the applicant that you are required by law to provide them with a copy of the report, and you cannot charge more than one such fee in a 12-month period.
Security Deposit
Landlords cannot charge more than 2 months' rent as a security deposit for an unfurnished apartment under Maine law (§ 6032).
Housing Discrimination Law
Maine has comprehensive state-level protections under the Maine Human Rights Act (MHRA). In addition to the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA), Maine law prohibits discrimination based on:
- Race and Color
- National Origin and Ancestry
- Religion
- Sex, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity
- Familial Status (having children)
- Physical or Mental Disability
- Receipt of Public Assistance (e.g., Section 8 vouchers)
As a consequence, you are not allowed to use these details as a basis for rejection on a Maine Rental Application form, nor to include them in the decision-making process.
Notice of Eligibility
You must disclose the screening criteria used during the application process, as well as any factors that could lead to a refusal. To ensure transparency, it is a standard requirement for applicants to provide a signature of acknowledgment. Additionally, Maine law (Title 14 § 6030-J) requires a written disclosure of all recurring service charges and fees before a lease is signed.
Consent Credit Check
Within Maine, federal law is in effect that requires potential renters to provide written consent for a credit history check during the application process. This is known as the Federal Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
Other Real Estate Documents
Use one of our real estate legal forms below to make sure everything runs smoothly:
FAQs About Maine Rental Application Form
Understanding what your Maine rental application can and cannot do is vital before you create your own from scratch. Find out more about how these screening documents work and what you need to know when writing them.
When you wish to rent out your property to a tenant, you can use a ME rental application to check the potential resident before they move in. This allows you to get important background information from the applicant.
In Maine you might use a rental application to find out any of the following about a prospective tenant:
- Whether they can afford rent or not
- If they have a positive or negative rental history
- If they are employed
- Their credit history
- Whether they have committed any crimes or felonies
A credit reference is a document that provides information on the credit history of an applicant for a rental property. This may be requested on Maine rental applications so that landlords can properly assess whether a potential tenant will be able to meet the rental payment schedule.
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