Prospective Residents Resources

Matchbox rents by the unit, not by individual bedrooms.

All leases are for the full unit. However, an Individual Lease Addendum with a Guaranty of Lease allows each approved tenant to be responsible only for their portion of the lease rather than the entire amount.

Listings may show both a total unit price and a per-bedroom cost to help estimate individual expenses, but this does not mean rooms are leased separately.

Occupancy limits can vary by property and are confirmed during the application process.

Matchbox does not place residents with random roommates.

Any person over the age of 18 must fill out an application. To complete an application, select Apply Now. Applicants must then either be approved and self-qualify, or obtain a Guarantor.

Each adult (person over 18 years of age) planning to occupy the home must fill out an application. When a Guarantor is needed, they must also complete an application.

Any person over the age of 18 who resides in the home must be listed on the Lease to have a legal right to occupy the home. We must verify the suitability of everyone on the Lease through the application process.

We strive to provide mutual accountability and responsibility for the benefit of our residents. It’s imperative that ALL our residents fully understand and acknowledge our pet and animal-related policies. We use a third-party service, PetScreening, to ensure all applicants understand how to adhere to the property’s pet and animal policies, even if you do not have a pet or animal. This ensures we have formalized pet and animal-related policy acknowledgments and more accurate records to create greater mutual accountability. Please see these instructions on making a PetScreening profile.

A guarantor is required for any tenant—student or non-student—who does not meet our Tenant Selection Criteria. A guarantor agrees to take responsibility for your lease obligations if you are unable to fulfill them.

Importantly, a Guaranty of Lease also satisfies a requirement of the Individual Lease Addendum, which allows each party to a lease to be responsible for only their portion of the lease. Without a qualifying guarantor (or equivalent approval), tenants may otherwise be held jointly and severally liable for the full lease amount.

Your guarantor does not need to be related to you.

If you do not have a guarantor, please reach out to one of our Portfolio Managers about theguarantors.com, where you can apply for a third-party guarantor, or for alternative lease pre-payment options.

Please view a sample of our Guarantor Form.

Yes. Your student’s lease is valid if it has been signed by your student (who is 18 or older) and accepted by the landlord.

A decision not to sign as a guarantor does not invalidate the lease. However, there are important implications. Without a qualifying guarantor and signed Guaranty of Lease (or approved third-party guarantor), your student’s lease may not qualify for the Individual Lease Addendum. In that case, your student could be held jointly and severally responsible, meaning they may be liable for the full lease amount, not just their individual portion.

If you prefer not to serve as a guarantor, your student may have the option to apply for a third-party guarantor service. Please contact our team for available options.

When completing the tenant application, you will be asked to provide the contact information for your guarantor. When your application has been fully submitted, the guarantor will receive a link to the email you provided that will allow them to complete their application. In order for their application to be fully submitted, they must finish and submit the application payment.

Using the provided link will attach their application directly to your account, provide them with their own login to your account, and allow us to complete all the necessary screening and, once approved, paperwork.

Please see our Guarantor Application Instructions email for some helpful information on accessing the guarantor application.

Our application fee is $50.00 (Non-refundable) per applicant. This fee is applicable to prospective tenants and guarantors.

Yes, however we will require you to secure a suitable person to guaranty the lease. You may not be a Guarantor to your own Lease, nor may a roommate guaranty your Lease.

View a sample of our Guarantor Form.

We must evaluate the credit-worthiness of all involved in our leasing process. The guarantor’s credit must be satisfactory and source of funds must be approximately five times the monthly rent. They must also be over 18 years of age and live within the United States.

Yes. This fee covers each individual associated with the leasing process. Every person over the age of 18 will need to pay the application fee. A full credit check is performed on each and every applicant, including guarantors.

Help Logging in to a Guarantor Application
If the person whose lease you will guarantee provided your contact information within their tenant application, you should have received a secure, single-use link via email to access your Guarantor application. This link was only valid the first time it was used to create your account.  If, when you use that link, you see the error: “The link you used is no longer valid. If you need assistance with your account, please contact your property manager,” try signing in using the Tenant WebACCESS Portal by selecting the “Existing Account” option.

If you were asked to apply as a guarantor after the person whose lease you will guarantee submitted their property application or signed their lease, or your link has expired, you need to create a new account. Open the Tenant WebACCESS Portal. Select “New Account.” From the dropdown list, choose “Guarantor Application” (do not select your guarantee’s property). Enter your contact information and click “Sign Up.” You will receive a confirmation email with a new secure link to access an electronic application.

Technical Difficulty Logging into Your In-Progress Application?

Many issues are caused by browser settings. Try using a different browser such as Chrome, Chrome Incognito mode, Safari, or Firefox. If you switch browsers or devices, you can return to your application by going to MatchboxRealty.com > Apply Now > Apply for house or to be a Guarantor > Choose Log into Existing Account > use your email and password.

You can also adjust pop-up settings within your chosen browser by going to settings and searching “pop up” to quickly access options. Allow pop-ups or redirects for MatchboxRealty.com.

If you are using a mobile device, sometimes using the Google Search app instead of a browser can fix the issue. To return to your application using the app: open Google Search App > search Matchbox Realty > go to site > select the three red horizontal lines in the upper right corner > tap Apply for housing or to be a guarantor > choose Log into Existing Account > use your email and password.

Please note that some protected devices, like work computers, may have extra protections and limitations that interfere with pop-ups and cause issues. Try using a personal device.

If you’re still unable to access your in-progress application, please contact us at info@MatchboxRealty.com for assistance.

First and foremost, we operate in strict compliance with all Fair Housing Guidelines. After receiving an application we investigate rental / ownership history, credit report, criminal report and source of funds verification along with other Tenant Selection Criteria. If you are interested in seeing these criteria, please inquire.

Typically, we require the monthly source of funds of applicants to be three times the lease payments. For a guarantor it must be five times.

Typically, once we have all pertinent information required (including the non-refundable Application Fee) we can fully process your application within 3 business days.

We will contact you, as soon as possible, to let you know that you have been approved. If you have not heard from us, please reach out about your application status at info@matchboxrealty.com. When notified, you should then immediately schedule an appointment to sign your Lease. A unit is not marked unavailable until the lease is signed.

All applications are accepted and processed on a first come-first served basis. Due to our fiduciary relationship to the owner, if more than one application is submitted before approval of an application, we are required to select the highest rated application.

In the event your application is denied, we make every effort to contact you promptly regarding the denial and any steps that might be available to you.