How property managers request a bank statement from applicants
By Arthur Teboul, DokuTrak · Published
In short
Ask the applicant for their two most recent full monthly bank statements, every page, as PDFs from online banking. Bank statements show that income actually lands in an account and that the deposit and first month’s rent are on hand. They matter most for self-employed applicants, new hires and anyone without regular pay stubs.
Why property managers need a bank statement
A pay stub shows what an employer says it paid; a bank statement shows the money arriving. You match recurring deposits with the income on the application, and for applicants with irregular or self-employed income the statements are often the clearest picture of what comes in each month. They also show whether the move-in funds exist.
What exactly to ask for
The two most recent complete monthly statements for the account where income is deposited, all pages, blank ones included. Tell applicants they may black out the account number except the last four digits, but not balances, deposits or the account holder’s name.
What to check when it arrives
- The account holder’s name matches the applicant, or a co-applicant on a joint account.
- Recurring deposits line up with the employer or income source on the application.
- Pages run complete (1 of 4 through 4 of 4) and the two statement periods are consecutive.
Email to send your client
Replace the bracketed parts. The same text fits in the message of a DokuTrak request (up to 1,000 characters).
Subject: Bank statements for your rental application
Hi [Client name],
Thanks for your application. To finish reviewing it, I need your two most recent monthly bank statements for the account where your income is deposited.
Please send the full statements as PDFs from your online banking, every page, even the blank ones. You can black out your account number except the last four digits, but please leave the deposits, the balances and your name visible.
Could you send them by [date]? If your income goes into more than one account, send the statements for each, and ask me if anything is unclear.
Best, [Your name]
Ask once. DokuTrak does the chasing.
- Your client uploads from one link, with no account and no password.
- Reminders go out on a schedule, by default 2, 5, 10 and 14 days after the request, until the file arrives.
- With AI review switched on in your workspace (it is off by default), each upload gets a first pass that flags a file that is not a bank statement, an unreadable or blurry scan or a copy where one of these is missing or cut off: the account holder, the statement period. It says so when it is not sure.
- You accept every file or mark it for re-upload, and your client gets the note by email. The AI never accepts a file.