Sex offender check API for tenant screening
Add a sex offender check across every US registry to your tenant-screening flow with one API call — scored, source-tagged results your leasing teams can act on immediately.
25 free searches, no card. $0.15 a call, no platform fee, no seats, no minimum. No code needed: search from your dashboard, or integrate the full API when you’re ready.
curl https://api.offendersearch.app/v1/search \ -H "X-API-Key: $OFFENDERSEARCH_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"query": {"firstName": "Paul", "lastName": "Walsh", "dob": "1975-09-30", "ageTolerance": 1}}' // response { "status": "complete", "elapsedMs": 410, "counts": { "records": 0, "sourcesQueried": 58, "sourcesComplete": 58, "sourcesIncomplete": 0 }, "records": [] } // a match carries its reason { "matchState": "dob_match", "matchConfidence": 0.98, "matchBasis": ["lastName:exact", "firstName", "dob"] }
Deciding whether to rent to someone? Use an FCRA workflow.
If a result will help decide whether to rent to someone, the check has to run as an FCRA-regulated consumer report, with a permissible purpose, consent, accuracy controls and a dispute path for the person. Our standard search and API are not a consumer report, and standard results are never used for that decision. FCRA workflows run through FCRA Partner Access, for background check companies and screening platforms under a written FCRA agreement.
FCRA pricing is quoted per partner, so contact us for pricing.
Screening challenges for property managers and tenant-screening providers
- Applicants move across state lines; single-state checks miss them
- Leasing decisions can’t wait on slow, manual registry lookups
- Fair-housing and state-law limits vary by jurisdiction
What sex offender screening gives property managers and tenant-screening providers
Screen applicants in the leasing flow, not after
Monitor a portfolio by area on a schedule
Keep a source-verified record of each check
Property Management sex offender check API: request and response. One POST per person, or the same search from the dashboard with no code.
curl https://api.offendersearch.app/v1/search \ -H "X-API-Key: $OFFENDERSEARCH_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"query": {"firstName": "Paul", "lastName": "Walsh", "dob": "1975-09-30", "ageTolerance": 1}}' // response { "status": "complete", "elapsedMs": 410, "counts": { "records": 0, "sourcesQueried": 58, "sourcesComplete": 58, "sourcesIncomplete": 0 }, "records": [] } // a match carries its reason { "matchState": "dob_match", "matchConfidence": 0.98, "matchBasis": ["lastName:exact", "firstName", "dob"] }
Send what you have. Name and date of birth; age or birth year when that is all you hold. Date of birth drives matchState: dob_match, year_match, age_match or no_dob_age_year.
Read the counts. sourcesComplete against sourcesQueried says whether all 58 registries answered, so a partial search is never read as a clear one.
Branch on the score. matchConfidence and matchBasis on every record, with the registry cited.
| Person | Checked for | Result | Answered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Walsh | staff and vendor check | No match | 58 / 58 |
| Jordan Sample | staff and vendor check | Match · dob_match | 58 / 58 |
| J. Sample | staff and vendor check | Review · year_match | 58 / 58 |
Read the API docs › · Search from the dashboard › · Screen a CSV without code ›
Sex offender screening built for property management. One key, one schema, one stored record of every check.
Address & radius search
Search by city, ZIP, or lat/lng with a radius to screen applicants and monitor a portfolio’s neighborhoods.
Every US registry in one call
Catch prior registrations in other states, not just where the applicant currently lives.
Typed addresses
Residence, secondary, employment, and school addresses return as separate typed entries, with coordinates where geocoded.
When property managers and tenant-screening providers run a sex offender check. Each moment, and the call that fits it.
Around a property, before you list it
A radius search shows registrants near a building, which helps owners and managers answer residents’ safety questions.
Vendor and maintenance access
Contractors and maintenance staff with keys to occupied units get screened before they are given access.
Applicant screening — where the law allows it
Tenant decisions are regulated and, in some states, registry use for housing is prohibited. When it is allowed, it runs through an FCRA-regulated workflow.
Ongoing area awareness
A location monitor alerts you when a registrant moves near a managed property.
Before a unit turn or a new hire on site
Leasing agents, porters and on-site supers are screened before they start, since they move through common areas and occupied units.
When residents ask
A documented location search gives a manager a factual answer when a resident asks about safety near the building.
Property Management screening workflow. Step by step, from the first call to the stored record.
Check the state rule first. California, Nevada and New Jersey restrict using registry information for housing; NYC adds fair-chance limits. Know the rule for each property.
Use location search for buildings. Address, ZIP or radius around each property.
Screen staff and vendors by name and date of birth. One call across the 58 US registries.
Route applicant decisions to FCRA workflows. Tenant-screening decisions run through an FCRA-regulated consumer report, with a person making the final call.
Monitor your portfolio. Location monitors on each property alert you to changes nearby.
Property Management screening: what the law requires and what it doesn’t
Housing is the hardest area for registry data. California prohibits using Megan’s Law information for housing or accommodations unless the use protects a person at risk or another law authorizes it (Penal Code § 290.46(j)); Nevada (NRS 179B.270) and New Jersey (N.J.S.A. 2C:7-16(c)) restrict housing use as well. New York City makes a landlord presumptively liable when it receives criminal history it may not consider, which makes over-inclusive screening output a risk to the customer.
Some jurisdictions expressly permit registry inquiries for housing — DC, Montgomery County (MD), Colorado and Cook County among them — so the rule genuinely varies by property. The durable, low-risk uses for property managers are location awareness around their buildings and screening the staff and vendors who hold keys.
Because the rules shift by jurisdiction, a portfolio spread across states needs a per-property policy rather than one national rule. Location awareness around each building and screening of staff and vendors with keys are low-risk everywhere; applicant screening is the part that changes by state and city, and it belongs in an FCRA-regulated workflow wherever it is allowed. Keeping those uses separate in your systems is the simplest way to stay inside each rule.
Sex offender screening for property management, by the numbers. The same answer whichever registry holds the record.
Registry and criminal records for property management, on one key. Most property managers and tenant-screening providers need more than one check, and running two vendors means two integrations, two contracts and two invoices.
Sex offender registry
58 US registries, continuously updated, with photographs, aliases, addresses and the official record citation on every match. 1.5M records in one schema.
Sex offender API ›Criminal records
1,408 county jail rosters, 53 state corrections systems, courts, warrants and federal custody, almost 50 million records in the same scored, source-cited schema. Same key, same price.
Criminal search API ›FCRA background checks
When a result decides a hire or a tenancy, the check runs as an FCRA order through FCRA Partner Access: consent, the check, disputes and adverse-action steps. Pricing is quoted per partner.
FCRA Partner Access ›Coverage today: 1,914 criminal jurisdictions catalogued, 1,564 live, 51 states + DC + federal. See what each state publishes, or the live list at /v1/criminal/sources.
What property management screening costs per check. $0.15 a call, $0.11 past 2,000 a month. No platform fee, no seats, no minimum.
| Checks / month | Cost | Per check |
|---|---|---|
| 500 | $75.00 | $0.1500 |
| 5,000 | $630.00 | $0.1260 |
| 50,000 | $5,580.00 | $0.1116 |
A batch is billed per row, so bulk screening costs the same per person as a single lookup. No setup fee, no per-seat licence, no monthly minimum on search and no annual contract, so the price scales down with you as well as up. A fraction of what legacy screening platforms charge.
The background check API · screen a CSV without code. More for developers: the free background check API tier, background check API pricing, the employment screening API and tenant screening API, and the background check API in Python and background check API in Node.js tutorials.
Property Management screening FAQ
For anything else, talk to sales or read the API docs.
Can I search around a property address?
Yes. Provide a ZIP or coordinates with a radius to return registrants near a location. Radius matching sees only records we have geocoded — the large majority, but not all — so pair it with a name or ZIP search when completeness matters.
Are there fair-housing limits?
Decisions based on this data are regulated; consult counsel for your jurisdictions and keep a human making the final call, with the search supplying the evidence.
Can landlords check the sex offender registry for applicants?
It depends on the state. California, Nevada and New Jersey restrict registry use for housing; DC, Colorado and Cook County expressly permit inquiries. Applicant decisions run through an FCRA-regulated workflow.
Can I see registrants near my property?
Yes, with an address, ZIP or radius search, and a location monitor to alert you to changes.
Should maintenance staff be screened?
Anyone with keys to occupied units is a sensible scope for screening, and it is an employment check rather than a housing decision.
Do we have to disclose registrants near a property?
Disclosure rules are state law and vary; many states point buyers and renters to the public registry instead. Ask counsel for each state in your portfolio.
Can vendors be monitored?
Yes. Person monitors on vendors and maintenance staff alert you if a registry status changes while they hold keys.
Does registry screening count as tenant screening?
Only if it informs whether to rent to someone. Location searches and staff screening are not tenant decisions; applicant screening runs through an FCRA-regulated workflow where the state allows it.
Related
Screen property managers and tenant-screening providers with one API
Add a sex offender check across every US registry to your tenant-screening flow with one API call — scored, source-tagged results your leasing teams can act on immediately.