Renter has apartment application cancelled after asking agent for 'landlord reference'

Tom Cashman, from Sydney, Australia, claims he had a frosty response after asking his agent, Stephanie, to contact the landlord of his prospective rental to source a reference from recent tenants

Tom says his apartment application was canceled after asking agent for a ‘landlord reference’

A comedian has shared how he had his application for a rental property canceled after asking his agent for proof the landlord had been good to prior tenants.

Tom Cashman, from Sydney, Australia, said he had asked his agent, Stephanie, to contact the landlord of his prospective rental to source a reference from recent tenants.

He explained to his followers on Instagram and TikTok, where he shared videos documenting the exchange, that this was only fair, as he had been asked to provide several rental references before having his application approved.

After a four day wait, Tom followed up with Stephanie, who emailed back asking him to explain his request.

In response, Tom said he has previously found “landlord references” an “effective way to find out if an owner is good to their tenants (and it seems appropriate, as I’ve already provided a few references to them)”.

Stephanie replied with a short email saying this would not be possible, as the landlord was “not in contact” with previous tenants and that providing references was not a “requirement” for a landlord.

This prompted more back and forth between the two, in which Tom questioned that the property owner didn’t have any of their prior tenants’ contact details, and Stephanie clarified that the owner did not wish to contact them.

“The owner does not wish to connect the previous tenants and that is not a requirement. All the best with your property search,” the agent responded.

At the end of his video, Tom acknowledged that he had rubbed Stephanie up the wrong way

In an odd twist, Tom then received an automated email that he received from the leasing website, which stated that his application had been “withdrawn”.

In another email to Stephanie, Tom said he was aware that landlord references weren’t a requirement, and mentions the withdrawn reference, asking whether Stephanie had canceled his application because of his request.

Stephanie didn’t answer the question, instead emailing back with just one line claiming that the landlord preferred a “long term lease period”.

In a video in which a bemused Tom talks about the exchange, he admits his exchange definitely “pissed Stephanie off”.

While he called on future rental applicants to ask for landlord references in a bid to normalize the practice, he acknowledged that his approach hadn’t been all too successful.

“In conclusion, I think asking for a reference is a good idea,” he said.

“However, if they can’t find anyone, I would advise rubbing their nose in it, because they will immediately reject your application.”

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