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ClearScreening is a tenant background-screening service aimed at independent landlords, small property managers, and real estate agents who need FCRA-compliant tenant reports without signing up for a heavyweight enterprise screening platform. The product sits squarely in the SMB landlord lane — the customer base is people managing 1 to 50 units who can't justify the per-user pricing of RentPrep, SmartMove, or TransUnion's enterprise tiers, and who don't want the privacy tradeoffs of free-tier screening products that monetize applicant data.
ClearScreening's product family includes full credit reports, nationwide criminal background checks, eviction history, income verification, and an applicant-pay "SmartScreen" option that lets the prospective tenant pay for their own report and share it with multiple landlords. The applicant-pay model is the most interesting feature of the service for real estate agents helping clients screen rental applicants — it moves the cost off the landlord and onto the applicant, which is standard practice in most major rental markets and a meaningful efficiency gain.
For real estate agents, ClearScreening matters in two specific use cases. First, agents representing landlord clients on single-family or small multi-family rentals need a simple, compliant screening service they can recommend. Second, agents managing their own rental portfolios (which is increasingly common as agents diversify into investment) need a tool they can use directly. ClearScreening addresses both.
What Are the Key Features?
Credit Report. Full TransUnion credit report with FICO-equivalent score. Includes trade lines, collections, and public records. Pulled with applicant consent using soft-pull methodology (does not affect applicant credit score).
Criminal Background Check. Nationwide criminal history search covering federal, state, and county records where available. Includes sex offender registry check. FCRA-compliant reporting with adverse-action workflow support.
Eviction History. National eviction database covering roughly 27 million eviction records across all 50 states. Captures filed, adjudicated, and dismissed evictions — important for interpreting applicants who have eviction filings that did not result in judgments.
Income Verification. Employment and income verification via applicant-provided documentation. Optional employer contact workflow. Not as deep as Plaid-based income verification, but sufficient for most SMB landlord use.
SmartScreen (applicant-pay option). Applicant signs up, pays for their own report, and shares the results with one or multiple landlords. Moves screening cost off landlord, speeds up the application process, and creates a reusable report applicants can submit to multiple properties.
FCRA-compliant adverse action letters. Built-in templates and workflow for denying applicants based on screening information, including the required adverse-action disclosure under FCRA Section 615.
Instant results on most searches. Credit and criminal reports typically return within minutes. Eviction and income verification can take longer depending on data-source response times.
No monthly subscription or minimums. Pay-per-report model. No setup fees, no monthly minimums, no contract. Buy reports when you need them.
Mobile-friendly applicant experience. Applicants complete the application on phone or desktop. Signature capture, ID upload, and payment are mobile-optimized.
Multi-property and multi-user accounts. Property managers can set up accounts with multiple users and properties under a single login.
Document storage. Applicant-submitted documents and completed reports are stored in the account for FCRA-required retention periods.
Landlord pays or applicant pays — configurable per property. You can run some properties as landlord-pay and others as applicant-pay depending on your market norms.
How Much Does It Cost?
ClearScreening does not publish transparent per-report pricing on its public website as of 2026-04-13. The `/pricing` page returns a 404, and the homepage surfaces product features without dollar figures. Account registration is free, and pricing appears after login once you configure a property.
Based on industry research and competitor pricing benchmarks, tenant background screening services in ClearScreening's market segment price as follows:
| Report Bundle | Typical Market Range |
|---|---|
| Credit only | $15-25 per report |
| Criminal only | $15-25 per report |
| Credit + Criminal bundle | $25-40 per report |
| Credit + Criminal + Eviction ("full" screening) | $35-50 per report |
| Full screening + income verification | $45-75 per report |
- Registration is free — you can see ClearScreening's actual pricing after creating an account and configuring your first property.
- SmartScreen (applicant-pay) prices the report to the applicant, typically in the $35-55 range depending on report bundle.
- Volume or property-manager pricing may apply for high-volume accounts.
- No monthly subscription or seat pricing.
For a real estate agent or landlord running 5-15 screenings per year, the pay-per-report model with applicant-pay option is the right economic shape. For high-volume property managers running 100+ screenings per month, platforms like RentPrep or AppFolio may offer better per-report economics and integration.
Advisory for Paul/WEBB: The review HTML should call out the registration-to-see-pricing pattern honestly rather than citing a specific dollar figure we have not verified. Framing: "Registration is free — confirmed pricing appears in-app after you set up a property."
Pros & Cons
✅ Pros
- ✓ Applicant-pay SmartScreen is the best feature. Moves cost off the landlord, speeds up applications, and produces a reusable report applicants can share across multiple properties.
- ✓ Pay-per-report, no subscription. SMB landlords with sporadic screening needs don't pay during months they have no vacancies.
- ✓ FCRA compliance is handled. Adverse-action workflow, consent capture, and retention are built in. Saves DIY landlords from FCRA litigation risk.
- ✓ Eviction database is comprehensive. Nationwide eviction data with filed + adjudicated + dismissed differentiation. Important for nuanced applicant review.
- ✓ Free registration. No barrier to evaluating the product before committing to a screening.
- ✓ Mobile-optimized applicant flow. Applicants complete the process on their phone without friction.
- ✓ Multi-property account structure. Scales from one rental to a small portfolio without changing products.
❌ Cons
- × Pricing is not transparent. No public price list. Registration is required to see actual rates. Meaningful friction vs competitors who publish pricing openly.
- × No integrated lease workflow. ClearScreening is screening-only. You still need a lease platform (Innago, DoorLoop, TurboTenant, RentRedi) for the rental-management workflow.
- × Credit pull is TransUnion only. Not a tri-merge. For high-value tenants or borderline applicants, you may want tri-bureau data from a different provider.
- × Income verification is document-based, not Plaid-based. Modern competitors use Plaid or bank-API verification that is more tamper-resistant. ClearScreening's applicant-document workflow is more vulnerable to document fabrication.
- × Support is primarily email. Phone support exists but response times are variable. Not ideal for urgent FCRA compliance questions.
- × Integrations are limited. Doesn't plug into the major property-management suites as smoothly as SmartMove or RentPrep.
- × Commission rate is modest. 10% per paid report is below the 20-30% SaaS-category norm; economics favor volume referrals.
- × Brand is less recognized than TransUnion SmartMove or RentPrep. Some applicants may be skeptical of a less-familiar brand when asked to submit documents.
Who Should Use This Tool
Best For:
- Independent landlords with 1-20 units who need FCRA-compliant screening without subscription overhead.
- Real estate agents representing landlord clients on single-family or small-multifamily rentals who want a recommendation tool.
- Real estate agents running their own small rental portfolio as part of their investment strategy.
- Landlords in markets where applicant-pay screening is standard (most major metros).
- Small property managers scaling from one or two units to a small portfolio who don't yet need enterprise screening tools.
- Landlords with occasional screening needs who hate paying for a subscription during months of full occupancy.
Not Best For:
- Large property managers (500+ units) who need deeper integrations, dedicated account management, and enterprise-grade data APIs.
- Landlords in ultra-high-value markets ($5,000+/month rent) where tri-merge credit data and premium income verification are standard.
- Landlords who want a fully integrated rental workflow (screening + lease + payments + maintenance) — use Innago, DoorLoop, or RentRedi instead.
- Agents wanting transparent at-a-glance pricing before signing up — ClearScreening's gated pricing is friction.
- High-volume property managers who have negotiated enterprise pricing elsewhere and can beat ClearScreening's rates.
How Does It Compare?
vs TransUnion SmartMove ($25-40/report): SmartMove is the category standard with transparent pricing and the TransUnion brand. ClearScreening competes on applicant-pay flexibility and mobile experience. Comparable reports; SmartMove wins on brand trust, ClearScreening wins on workflow.
vs RentPrep ($22-41/report): RentPrep is human-review-backed (each report is reviewed by a FCRA-certified specialist before release). Higher trust on borderline applicants, slightly slower turnaround. Good for high-stakes rentals.
vs AAOA Screening ($20-45/report): American Apartment Owners Association screening is a membership-based service. Competitive pricing if you're already a member; ClearScreening wins for non-members.
vs RentRedi / TurboTenant / Innago (integrated screening inside rental platforms): Integrated screening trades depth for workflow simplicity. If your primary need is end-to-end rental management, integrated tools win. If screening is the specific need, ClearScreening is more focused.
vs Experian RentBureau (enterprise): RentBureau is built for large property managers with API integrations and data-pipeline requirements. Overkill for independent landlords.
vs MyRental by CoreLogic ($24.99-34.99/report): Similar market position, transparent pricing, widely trusted brand. A direct alternative worth comparing side-by-side.
Implementation Notes
The highest-ROI workflow for ClearScreening in a real estate practice is applicant-pay SmartScreen for listing clients. When representing a landlord client on a rental listing, set the property up as applicant-pay SmartScreen. Every applicant pays their own screening fee ($35-55 typical), submits the application through the mobile-optimized flow, and their report appears in the landlord's account within minutes. The landlord never fronts the screening cost, applicants self-select based on willingness to pay, and the paper trail supports any eventual FCRA adverse-action workflow. This matches the practice norm in most major metros.
The second workflow is investor-client screening support. Real estate agents working with investor clients on small-multifamily acquisitions frequently get asked "who do you recommend for tenant screening?" Having a vetted answer — ClearScreening for pay-per-report flexibility, RentRedi or DoorLoop for integrated workflow — turns that conversation into a trust-builder and potentially an affiliate commission if you include a referral link in your post-close onboarding email.
The third workflow is documenting the screening process for your own rentals. If you operate a small rental portfolio alongside your agent work, ClearScreening's retention features give you an FCRA-compliant paper trail on every screening decision — protection against the rare but real risk of a discrimination complaint from a denied applicant. Document the screening, document the decision criteria, keep the records. This discipline is worth more than the screening cost over a multi-year operating period.
Our Verdict
ClearScreening is a solid pay-per-report tenant screening option for independent landlords and real estate agents working with landlord clients on small rentals. The combination of FCRA-compliant workflow, applicant-pay SmartScreen option, and no-subscription pricing matches the actual needs of the 1-to-20-unit landlord market well.
The honest caveat is that the pricing opacity — registration required to see rates — is unusual in 2026 and creates friction that transparent competitors don't have. If you're willing to register to see actual per-report pricing, ClearScreening earns a place in the consideration set. If you refuse to engage with gated-pricing products on principle, TransUnion SmartMove publishes pricing transparently and is the obvious alternative.
Bottom line: ClearScreening scores 4.3/5 across the dimensions above.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does ClearScreening cost?
ClearScreening offers multiple pricing tiers. Contact ClearScreening directly or visit their official website for the most current pricing information, as plans and features may change.
Is ClearScreening good for real estate agents?
ClearScreening can be a useful tool for real estate professionals depending on your specific workflow needs. Read our full review above for a detailed breakdown of features, pricing, pros, and cons as they apply to agents and brokers.
What are the best alternatives to ClearScreening?
Several tools compete with ClearScreening in this space. We review and compare alternatives throughout this article and across our full tools directory. The best choice depends on your budget, team size, and specific feature requirements.
How easy is ClearScreening to set up?
Most users report that ClearScreening is straightforward to get started with. Setup time varies depending on the complexity of your needs and any integrations you configure.
Does ClearScreening require a long-term contract?
Most plans are available on a monthly basis with no long-term commitment required. Annual billing is typically available at a discount. Check ClearScreening’s current terms for cancellation policies and refund details.