Landlord Reference

Why this form exists, and what it will not do

Landlord Reference is for a former landlord or manager. The moment to use it: a prospective landlord asks about a former tenant. It sits in the Housing and rentals group on Papero. Applications, inspections, receipts, and letters for tenants and small landlords.

Fill it in this browser. Papero does not create an account, does not upload the answers, and does not keep a copy after you close the tab. When the preview looks right, print it or download a PDF. The PDF is built on your device. A blank download leaves the lines empty so someone else can fill them by hand.

Work through the page in order. The Landlord section asks for Your name, Phone, Property address. The Tenant section asks for Tenant name, Tenancy started, Tenancy ended, Monthly rent. The Record section asks for Rent paid on time, Proper notice before leaving, Damage beyond ordinary wear, Would you rent to them again.

Your name. Former landlord or manager. Phone. Where the new landlord can call. Property address. The unit they rented from you. Tenant name. The person you are describing. Tenancy started. First day. Tenancy ended. Last day, or "still in residence."

Monthly rent. The rent at the end. Rent paid on time. What your ledger shows. Proper notice before leaving. If they have left. Damage beyond ordinary wear. Describe it, or "none." Would you rent to them again. A direct answer.

People send this back, or refuse it, for ordinary reasons. You were a roommate, not the landlord. You state a crime or a diagnosis. You refuse to say whether rent was paid. Read the finished page once as if you were the person receiving it. If a line would make you call back, fill that line.

Sign on the Signature and Date line. A typed name in the signature spot is weaker than ink on a printed page. Date it the day you sign, not the day you hope the other person signs.

What this page cannot do: This is not a lease, not a court filing, and not a city-mandated disclosure. Many cities add rent rules, just-cause eviction rules, and security-deposit deadlines on top of state law. Housing built before 1978 usually needs the federal lead-paint disclosure; this page does not replace that pamphlet or that signature. If a landlord hands you a portal or a paper packet, use theirs. Papero is not a law firm, not a government agency, and not the office that will accept or reject the paper.

State note for your state. Landlord Reference does not contain your state's required clauses, font size, language, or filing fee. Counties and cities inside your state sometimes add their own rule on top of the state. Before you rely on this for a lease, a school, a court, a bank, or an agency, compare it with the form that office publishes. If the office has no form, this template is a clear record of what you wrote and what you signed on this date.

After you print, use dark ink. Write "not applicable" on a line that does not apply, so a clerk does not treat a blank as a missing fact. Initial a correction beside the line. Do not cover a dollar amount with correction fluid. Each person who has a signature line signs their own name. One person cannot sign for another unless a statutory power of attorney, on the form that office accepts, already says so. Give the other party a copy the same day. On your copy, note the date and whether you handed it over, mailed it, or uploaded it to their portal. Attach copies of supporting papers, not your only original, unless the office demanded the original. Do not attach a Social Security card, a passport image, or a bank statement unless the recipient told you to, and then only in person or through their secure portal. Email is a common way those images are stolen. If the recipient is a government office, stop and use the form on that office's own site. Papero does not transmit this page, does not notarize it, and does not store it.

Keep a copy. Give the other party a copy. If you later change a fact, fill the form again and date the new copy. Do not scribble a second story into the margin of a page someone already signed. Write the date you handed it over, and how, on your own copy.

Before you rely on it

• You were a roommate, not the landlord.
• You state a crime or a diagnosis.
• You refuse to say whether rent was paid.

This is not a lease, not a court filing, and not a city-mandated disclosure. Many cities add rent rules, just-cause eviction rules, and security-deposit deadlines on top of state law. Housing built before 1978 usually needs the federal lead-paint disclosure; this page does not replace that pamphlet or that signature. If a landlord hands you a portal or a paper packet, use theirs.

How to fill and print it

1. Fill the lines. Type into the Landlord Reference in this browser. Write "not applicable" on a line that does not apply. What you type stays in this tab and is not uploaded.
2. Check the preview. The boxed preview is the page that prints. Read it once as the person who will receive the paper.
3. Print or download. Use Print, or download a filled PDF or a blank PDF. The file is built on your device.

More Housing and rentals forms

• Tenant Reference
• Rental Inspection Checklist
• Move-In Inspection

Questions