Felony Friendly Apartments in Indianapolis
If you are looking for Felony Friendly Apartments in Indianapolis or felon housing in Indiana, you should know that many landlords will not rent to felons. Finding crime-friendly apartments is often a struggle because property managers routinely check the background of rental applicants. But there are steps you can take to increase your odds of success.
How To Find Felony Friendly Apartments In Indianapolis
Applying for apartments listed on rental sites such as Apartments.com and Rent.com will often result in rejection because many of these rentals are in large apartment complexes managed by property management companies. These companies have strict acceptance policies and once they check your rental background, they will screen you for your criminal record. You’ll have a better chance of finding felon-friendly apartments in Indianapolis by focusing your search on small apartment complexes and independent housing ads on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist.
Another great option to find second-hand housing in Indianapolis is using Apartment Finder. Local apartment finders have expert knowledge of the Indianapolis rental market and listings of second-hand apartments in Indianapolis that you can apply for. If you have recently been released from prison, your parole officer, transitional housing provider, and re-entry service can all help you find an affordable apartment to give you a second chance.
Finding Housing Assistance for Felons in Indiana on Craigslist
Many apartments listed for rent on Craigslist are owned by independent landlords or managed by leasing agents with more flexible acceptance criteria. To view the latest Craigslist Indianapolis rental listings go to the housing section at https://indianapolis.craigslist.org/ and select opts/housing. Craigslist will show you second-chance apartments for rent in Indianapolis. Don’t limit your search to apartments because houses can be just as cheap. Filter results by price range, and choose your preferred zip code, number of bedrooms, and amenities.
Craigslist only provides basic rental information and you won’t see “applicants welcome” on any listing. But it doesn’t matter. Finding criminal-friendly housing is a numbers game. The more landlords you contact, the sooner you will find a place to live. Some listings will say no credit check. This may mean that the landlord does not run any kind of background check, which is great for you, or it may mean that they run a background check, which only includes convictions and fines. Includes intrusion detection.
Use the messaging system to inquire about any rentals that match your needs. To save time, create an inquiry to copy and paste into each message. Ask about their rental acceptance criteria, and the full cost of moving in (security deposit, first month’s rent, application fee). If their response mentions a background check, send a follow-up inquiry asking if they’d be willing to consider your background and brief details about your convictions.
Check Craigslist’s Indianapolis apartment listings at least twice a day to catch new rentals as they are posted. Beware of scammers – never send an application fee until you’ve seen a property. Don’t pay rent or a security deposit until you sign the lease.
Finding Second Chance Housing Indianapolis On Facebook Marketplace
If you already have a Facebook account, open the app and select Marketplace from the menu. Visit the Housing section to view apartments for rent in Indianapolis. Use price, location, and other filters to narrow down the results. Then send inquiries to landlords following the same approach described above for Craigslist. Don’t take rejections personally, just move on to the next apartment rental on your list.
Using An Apartment Locator For Second Chance Apartments In Indianapolis
Using a second-chance apartment locator is often the fastest way to find second-chance housing in Indianapolis. Tenants looking for second-chance apartments often encounter background problems and bad credit with landlords willing to ignore their history.
Apartment finders will usually want to run a background check on you so they can match you with the right landlord. Other opportunity employers have different acceptance criteria. Some landlords will rent to tenants with a misdemeanor but no crime. Others will only accept a non-violent felony, or for example a felony over 5 years old.
Use Google to search for “second chance apartment finder Indianapolis” and look at the results.
If you have a felony conviction over 7 years old, you can go directly to secondchanceapartmentfinders.org and apply for one of the rentals on their site. Apartment seekers also advertise on Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. Since second-chance apartments are in high demand, contact several apartment finders so you have a large pool of homeowners to apply to.
Using Reentry Resources To Find Felon Friendly Apartments
Offender reentry programs offer support and assistance to recently released offenders. They know that stable housing and employment are essential to successful re-entry. When you work with a reentry program in Indianapolis, their coaches and case managers will help you apply for apartments and identify other rental opportunities within their network of housing providers.
Reentry advisors will also guide you through the application process for low-income housing programs in Indianapolis provided by the Indiana Housing Authority. The local housing authority is responsible for administering the public housing program and the housing choice voucher program (Section 8). Both programs have waiting lists, so apply early.
Your re-entry counselor will help you apply for any other assistance you may be entitled to, including food stamps and health care. To learn about re-entry housing options in Indianapolis, visit PACE – Public Advocates in Community Re-Entry – https://paceindy.org/ Fill out the contact form on the website and an advisor will contact you shortly.
Know Your Housing Rights
While landlords can use your criminal background as a reason to reject your rental application, they cannot arbitrarily discriminate against you. Any landlord with a no-crime policy is breaking the law. Criminal background assessments should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis against their tenant acceptance policy. Denials must be based on a legitimate risk to other residents, the landlord, or the safety of the property.
When a landlord reviews your background report, they should look at the nature and age of your offense and the efforts you’ve made to rehabilitate since then. To help the landlord give your application fair consideration, make sure you provide employment and character references.
Final Thoughts
Finding apartments that rent to felons in Indianapolis or any major city takes a method and persistence. Don’t let a few rejections discourage you. There are thousands of landlords in Indianapolis, some of whom are criminal-friendly, although they don’t advertise that fact.
Check Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace twice a day and send inquiries for every suitable apartment in your price range. Remember, you only need to copy and paste your prepared message so it should take at most 30 minutes. Alternatively, contact apartment finders and apply to landlords on their lists. Work with the Re-Entry Service to find Second Chance Apartments in Indianapolis and apply for affordable housing programs.
