Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; affordable housing, criminal record screening model policy.

Added requirement for landlords to use a criminal record screening model policy developed by the Department when making adverse decisions based on criminal or arrest records for affordable housing applicants

Added requirement for landlords to provide applicants with a written copy of the criminal record screening policy

Added requirement for the Department to convene a stakeholder group to provide input on developing the criminal record screening model policy

Added requirement for landlords to consider evidence of family abuse victim status when evaluating applicants with low credit scores

Added requirement for landlords to develop and maintain a statement of tenant rights and responsibilities on their website in plain language

Added requirement for landlords to develop and maintain a sample termination notice referencing rent acceptance with reservation on the Department's website

Added new definitions for 'Application deposit', 'Application fee', 'Tenant records', and 'Visible evidence of mold' to clarify landlord-tenant obligations

Set effective date for the new provisions to January 1, 2026

Landlords of affordable housing must use a standardized criminal record screening model policy developed by the Department of Housing and Community Development and post it on their website.

Landlords must provide applicants with a written copy of the criminal record screening policy when making adverse decisions based on criminal records.

The Department must convene a stakeholder group including housing organizations, legal aid groups, and industry associations to develop the criminal record screening policy.

New requirement for landlords to create and maintain tenant rights statements in plain language on the Department's website for both standard rental agreements and manufactured home lot rentals.

Landlords must provide a printable acknowledgment form for tenants to confirm they received the tenant rights statement.

Strengthened requirements for landlords to consider family abuse victim status when evaluating credit scores of otherwise qualified applicants.

Added new definitions for 'Application deposit' and 'Application fee' to clarify what constitutes each type of payment.