Prospective Residents Resources

What is a Guarantor & Guarantor Applications

What is a Guarantor & Do I Need One?

During the application process, prospective tenants will be asked to provide contact information for a Guarantor. A guarantor is required by any tenant, student or non-student, who does not meet the necessary Tenant Selection Criteria. A guarantor accepts responsibility for your lease obligations in the event you are unable to do so. Please see our Applicaiton Process FAQs for additional information regarding our Selection Criteria and Guarantors.

Please be aware that you cannot guarantee your (or your roommates’) lease. A Guarantor must be over 18 years of age and reside within the United States. The guarantor’s credit must be satisfactory, and source of funds must be approximately five times the monthly rent. There are other qualifications, but the ones outlined here are questions we are routinely asked. If you have additional questions regarding the guarantor process, do not hesitate to reach out to us at Info@MatchboxRealty.com.

As soon as you submit your application, the person you list as a Guarantor will receive an email to complete their application.

Completing the Guarantor Application

Applying Using a Guarantor Email Link

If you have received an email request to complete a Guarantor application, this is because a prospective Matchbox tenant has listed you as a potential Guarantor to their lease. In order to act as a guarantor, you will need to complete the application using the provided link.

When you click on the link for the guarantor application, you will be prompted to create a password. This is a single-use link. Once you create a password, you will be unable to use this link again.

After you create the password, you can log in later to finish the application. To access the application, go to our tenant WebAccess page. Be sure to favorite this page as this is the portal you will use to access your account going forward! Your account will have a distinct log in, created above, but will be linked to the associated tenant account.

If you use the link again after creating a password, you will be directed to the Matchbox Access Portal, but will receive an error message. Please click over to “Existing account”. You can use your email address and the password created in order to log in.

A nonrefundable application fee of $50.00 shall accompany the application. The payment must be submitted in order for the Guarantor Application to be processed. Your application is only complete once payment has been submitted. Please check to be sure all steps are completed prior to lease signing to facilitate a smooth Guarantee of Lease process. 

In the event you are unable to access your application, please check to see if the person you are applying to serve as guarantor for has been processed as a tenant. This occurs when a prospect has received a completed lease and been moved over from their prospect account to a tenant account. When this occurs, the link to complete the guarantor application will no longer be valid and the Guarantor will need to use the steps below to submit an Independent Guarantor Application. 

If you have any issues or need further assistance with your account, please do not hesitate to reach out to us at Info@MatchboxRealty.com.

Applying Using an Independent Guarantor Application

If you are applying as Guarantor for an individual who has already completed their lease and has been processed into our system as a tenant, you will need to take the following steps –

1. Use the Apply Now button on the Matchbox Website to start the application process.
2. Select Apply for Housing from the dropdown menu
3. From the Application Page, complete the necessary fields
   • For Property Selection, select Guarantor Application from the dropdown.
4. Select Sign Up
5. Use the account finalization email to verify your account
6. Complete the Guarantor Application
   • Please review the instructions/disclosure at the top of the application. This section provides our criteria for qualifying as a Guarantor and will help you determine if you qualify to serve as guarantor. If you have any questions regarding the Guarantor process, please see our Application Process FAQs, or reach out to us at 540-434-5150 ext.100 or info@MatchboxRealty.com

For more detailed instructions, see our Independent Guarantor Application Instructions.

Once the guarantor application is complete, the guarantor or the tenant must notify us. The application will be processed. If approved, when the lease is signed, the Guarantor will receive the Guarantee of Lease form via DocuSign. If the guarantor is not approved, we will be in contact with the Guarantor/Tenant regarding next steps for obtaining a Guarantee of Lease.

Upon approval, Guarantor accounts are merged to the Tenant account, which will provide the Guarantor access to the Tenant account. Guarantors will login to the account using the email and password they used when establishing their account to complete the guarantor application. Please see Using the Tenant Web Access Portal for additional information.

The Guarantee of Lease must be signed in order for the Guarantor process to be finalized.