Resident Selection Criteria

Overview:

Palomar Inn, owned and operated by Palomar Associates, is a 97-unit apartment community located at 1344 Pacific Avenue in Santa Cruz, California. A former hotel in the heart of downtown, the property contains retail and restaurant space on the first floor, a ballroom on the second floor, and residential facilities comprised of 3 (three) 1-bedroom units and 94 SRO units on the second through sixth floors. All units have private bathrooms. 1-bedroom units have kitchenettes, SRO units do not have kitchens .

Palomar Inn has a "No Smoking" policy that applies to the common areas of the property.

Palomar Associates do business in accordance with Fair Housing Amendment Acts (FHAA), and do not discriminate against interested persons or residents on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, familial status or disability. We are committed to attracting individuals with diverse backgrounds.

To ensure that all prospective residents are provided an equal opportunity to reside at Palomar Inn, applicants undergo an evaluation process which includes a credit/criminal background check, landlord references, and verification of qualifying income and assets. Qualifying households must have income not less than three times the monthly rent in addition to a background check.

Criminal Background Check: A check will be made of criminal records for the past seven years. Offenses which may be grounds for rejection are those involving illegal weapons possession, physical violence to persons or property, domestic violence, any form of assault, fraud, theft, breaking and entering, or burglary. Applicants who are deemed ineligible because of these past criminal records will be provided a copy of the criminal background record and provided an opportunity to respond.
Credit Check: A credit report will be obtained through National Tenant Network. An unsatisfactory credit history will disqualify an applicant from renting an apartment at Palomar Inn. An unsatisfactory credit history is one that reflects past or current bad debts, late payments or unpaid bills, liens, judgments or bankruptcies (within the last 7 years). Upon request, if an applicant is rejected for poor credit history, the applicant will be given the name, address and telephone number of the credit reporting agency that provided the credit information, as required by the FCRA. Mitigating circumstances regarding credit history may be considered when verified by appropriate documentation.
Reasonable Accommodation: Laws and regulations regarding requests for Reasonable Accommodation will be respected. Further, management will work with applicant and his/her representative, if any, to determine any additional accommodations that can be made for the applicant or resident that are financially feasible and are not an administrative burden.
Application fee: $35.00 for each adult applicant in a form of a money order or cashier's check only. This fee is only collected when applicants near the top of the waitlist are being processed for a current vacancy.

Additional Criteria that will be considered:

Applicant’s timely cooperation with verifications, background checks, and other intake processes.
Good housekeeping habits as reported by landlord(s).
Extenuating circumstances which may affect any of the above criteria.

Residency Requirements:

Unit Inspections: An inspection of the dwelling unit will be conducted at move-in and annually. Additional unit inspections may be required by various institutions and agencies. Residents will be notified in writing at least 24 hours prior to entering the unit for any reason, including scheduled inspections. In the case of emergency staff may not be able to provide 24 hours’ notice, and residents will be expected to accommodate reasonable requests for access due to health or safety needs. In such a case where the resident is not in the unit at the time of entry, written notice will be provided of the date, time, and reason for emergency entry to the unit.

House Rules: All residents are required to sign and abide by the House Rules which were established to ensure the quiet enjoyment of the Palomar Inn community. Failure to abide by any rule will result in written warnings, and subsequent infractions will be grounds for eviction.

Account in Good Standing: Residents shall pay rent in full each month. Charges for late payments or damage to the unit or common areas must be paid in full within one month unless a written payment agreement is arranged with the Manager. Security deposits may not be used to pay for damages while the resident is in possession of the unit.

Current Rent:

SRO (standard) = $1,489 - $1,589/month

Additional Information:

Pets and Service Animals: Pets are not permitted at Palomar Inn. Palomar Inn will allow Service animals that perform tasks for disabled residents. Service Animals are not pets. If a member of resident's household requires the services of an assistive animal to provide them with equal access to housing, then they should contact Management to discuss the accommodation request.

Accessibility: The common areas of the Palomar Inn building are fully accessible. Prospective and current residents who require a reasonable accommodation due to a disability please inform the Property Manager to discuss the accommodation request. Persons with disabilities who require a previously modified apartment will be given preference for a modified apartment when one becomes available. All apartment transfers must be approved by the Property Manager.

Smoking Policy: The Palomar Inn promotes a non-smoking living environment. Residents or their guests may smoke within the rented unit(s) but shall not smoke anywhere else in the building or in any common areas or adjoining grounds, nor shall resident permit any guests or visitors under the control of resident to do so. Smoking is NOT permitted within 25 feet of the building exterior. Smoke must not be detectable from common areas such as interior hallways or from adjacent units. Residents shall inform their guests of the non-smoking policy and will be responsible for their guests’ compliance with the policy.

Management’s promotion of a non-smoking living environment and the efforts to designate the Palomar Inn as a non-smoking community do not make the Management or any of its agents the guarantor of residents’ health or of a non-smoking condition of the apartment and common areas. However, Management shall take reasonable steps to enforce the non-smoking terms of its leases. Management is not required to take steps in response to smoking unless Management is put on notice of the presence of smoke via agent, personal knowledge, and/or written notice by a resident.

Change of Household Composition: If the Head of Household moves out of any unit occupied by additional authorized household members, a new Head of Household will be identified from among remaining household members; the new household must comply with all applicable regulations, standards, and limitations.

Compliance with Federal, State, and Local Laws: The Management will comply with all Federal, State, or local fair housing and civil rights laws and with all equal opportunity requirements set forth in HUD’s administrative procedures, including but not limited to the Fair Housing Act, the Federal Privacy Act, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

Grievance and Appeals Procedure: Management has adopted a procedure in accordance with applicable state or federal Program Regulations for the resolution of disputes arising out of this Rental Agreement or Resident's occupancy of the premises. The procedure establishes Resident's or Applicant right to a hearing on grievances related to Resident's occupancy and appeal of Management's decisions regarding Resident's occupancy, including notices of termination and eviction. Management has elected to determine that this grievance procedure shall not be applicable to any termination of tenancy or eviction that involves criminal or drug related activities.

Disclaimer: The processing and acceptance of the Rental Application and its application fee does not constitute a guarantee of acceptance for housing at Palomar Inn. All applicants must undergo and pass the tenant selection, program, and income criteria as described herein or as provided elsewhere by regulation, prior to acceptance. Acceptance or denial of tenancy will be communicated in writing.

AT THIS TIME WE ONLY HAVE SRO UNITS AVAILABLE

GROUNDS FOR DENIAL OF RENTAL APPLICATION

We welcome your application to rent an apartment at Palomar Inn. It is the responsibility of each applicant to provide any and all information required to determine eligibility. Any household members added at a later time and live-in-aides will be subject to the same screening criteria described below. The following lists the reasons why we might deny your application:

1) Credit

(a) Total unmet credit problems (including governmental tax liens) in excess of $5,000.

(b) A bankruptcy (within the last three years).

An exception for extraordinary medical and/or student loan expenses may be permitted. An exception for a foreclosure or short sale may be permitted at the discretion of the Owner/Agent if prior credit history is acceptable and does not include those reasons for rejection detailed above.

2) Rental History

(a) A judgment against an applicant obtained by the current or previous landlord.

(b) An unmet obligation owed to a previous landlord.

(d) Negative landlord reference

3) Criminal Background Check and Personal History

A check will be made of criminal conviction records for the past years for all adult Applicants of the household. Reports will be obtained from local and/or state records and may also include local Police records. If the Applicant has resided in a state other than California and has a past felony conviction, a report will be required from that state or federal organization. Generally, public records of this sort are only available for the past seven (7) years. However, if information becomes known during the screening process regarding criminal activity that happened before the past seven-year period which could impact the Applicant household’s eligibility to live at the property, the Management Agent reserves the right to consider this information as well. Serious felony offenses and/or continued and ongoing criminal activity will be grounds for rejection if such offenses involve physical violence to persons or property, domestic violence, sexual abuse, manufacturing or sale of narcotics, illegal weapons possession, any form of assault, breaking and entering, burglary or drug related criminal offenses. The nature, severity and recency of such felony offenses and/or ongoing criminal activity will be considered when reviewing the Applicant and only those potentially impacting the health, safety, security or right to peaceful enjoyment of the property of and by other residents, visitors or employees will be considered. Additionally, applicants may be rejected due to:

• A history of violence or abuse (physical or verbal), in which the applicant was determined to be the antagonist.

• Any household containing a member(s) that has been evicted from federally assisted housing for drug-related criminal activity, unless that person has successfully completed an approved, supervised drug rehabilitation program or the circumstances leading to the eviction no longer exist (household member has moved out).

• A household in which any member is currently engaged in illegal use of drugs or for which the owner has reasonable cause to believe that a member’s illegal use or pattern of use of a drug may interfere with the health, safety, security or right to peaceful enjoyment of the property of and by other residents, visitors or employees. Use shall constitute abuse for illegal drugs (unless required by doctor’s verification).

• Any household member who is subject to a state sex offender lifetime registration requirement. In order to implement this federal screening requirement, management will request the head of household to list all states they have lived in. The applicant/tenant file will contain written proof that this screening has been completed. Registered sex offenders will not be admitted. There is a new website that owners and management agents can use to search for registered sex offenders. Go to http://www.nsopr.gov.

• Any household member, if there is reasonable cause to believe that a member’s behavior, from abuse or pattern of abuse of alcohol, may interfere with the health, safety, security or right to peaceful enjoyment of the property by other residents, visitors or employees.

Consideration may be granted to Applicants with past nonviolent criminal records occurring seven or more years in the past with no further criminal record. Applicants will be provided the criminal background record and provided an opportunity to respond and to provide evidence of mitigating factors.

4) Nondiscrimination

In the performance of its obligations Palomar Associates will comply with the provisions of any federal, state or local law prohibiting discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, familial status, source of income, age, disability, AIDS, or AIDS related condition. If an applicant feels they have been discriminated against based on a disability, they may contact the Property Manager at (831) 423-7000.