How we handle this page
Differently from the rest of the site, deliberately.
We state what property policies say, as the properties state them, with a date. We do not tell anyone their record automatically disqualifies them, and we do not tell anyone it will be fine. Both are claims nobody should make to a renter in this position, and both would be guesses dressed up as expertise. That standard is set out on our background-issues service page.
What follows is knowable information about how San Antonio properties structure background review, which is genuinely useful before you spend a $50 to $75 non-refundable application fee.
The two variables that consistently matter
Age of the offense and its class.
Most properties in this market run a seven-year or longer felony lookback. Some go further. Within that window, an older conviction generally weighs less than a recent one, and a single conviction with nothing since weighs less than a pattern.
Offense class is the second axis. Management companies commonly distinguish between violent offenses, drug offenses and other non-violent felonies, and between convictions and lesser dispositions. Where flexibility exists in this market, it exists most often for older non-violent, non-drug convictions.
| Record type | Typical lookback | Where review is more common |
|---|---|---|
| Violent felony | 7+ years, often longer | Limited across all classes |
| Drug felony | 7+ years | Varies substantially by management company |
| Non-violent, non-drug felony, older | 7+ years | Class B and C, case-by-case |
| Non-violent felony, recent | 7+ years | Limited; recency is the obstacle |
| Pending charges | Current | Most will wait for disposition |
Across the communities we work with, confirmed July 2026. Policies are set by each property and change without notice.
Why Class B and C is where to look
Building age predicts who reviews a file by hand. Roughly 18% of San Antonio’s rental stock, about 47,352 units, was built between 1980 and 1989, and that older product is where on-site managers still hold discretion.
Newer Class A generally applies a management-company rule uniformly across a portfolio, which means the application is decided before anyone reads it. That is not hostility; it is architecture. But it does mean that applying at a 2020-built community with a record inside its lookback is usually spending a fee to confirm something already knowable.
The wider legal context
Worth understanding because it shapes what you will encounter.
HUD issued guidance in 2016 establishing that blanket criminal-record exclusions in housing can create disparate-impact exposure under the Fair Housing Act. It did not prohibit properties from considering criminal history. What it did was push a meaningful number of management companies toward individualized assessment, looking at the nature of the offense, how long ago it happened, and evidence of rehabilitation, rather than a categorical ban.
That is why “case-by-case review” now appears in screening criteria far more often than it did a decade ago, and why asking a property what its actual policy is has become a useful question rather than a formality.
We are locators, not attorneys. Nothing here is legal advice, and questions about your specific record, including eligibility for an order of nondisclosure or expunction under Texas law, belong with a qualified attorney.
What to ask, and what we ask on your behalf
Vague questions get marketing answers. These get facts:
- What is your criminal-history lookback period, and does it differ by offense class?
- Is your policy categorical, or do you conduct an individualized assessment?
- If assessment is individualized, who makes that decision and what do they want to see?
- Does a record change your deposit requirement, or only your approve/decline decision?
- Do you consider dispositions other than convictions?
We ask those, write the answer down with a date, and give you the list of properties whose stated policy would permit review of a record of your class and age.
We do not need the story
Offense class, the year, and the disposition. That is what a leasing office sees on a report, and it is all we need to match you against stated policies. We will not ask for more and we do not keep more.
What to expect on deposit
Background policy tends to be a threshold question rather than a risk-pricing one, which means the deposit lever works less reliably here than it does with credit. Where a property does have discretion, an elevated deposit or an accepted deposit-alternative product may be part of the approval, see guarantees and deposit alternatives.
Where credit is also a factor, that combination usually determines the deposit more than the record does.
Being honest about the ceiling
Sometimes the answer is that the combination of record, recency and target rent band is genuinely difficult in this market right now. When that is true we say it, rather than sending you a list of properties to be declined by.
What sometimes changes it: a different rent band, waiting for a disposition to land, addressing an accompanying credit or rental-debt issue, or simply time passing on a lookback window. What never changes it is a locator who promises approval.
For a factual shortlist based on stated policies, start here. Free, discreet, and no charge if we cannot place you. Related records are covered on misdemeanor apartments.
