rental process

Benson Management assigns housing to the first qualifying applicant(s) that fully complete all of the below steps. Until that happens, we reserve the right to rescind any housing offers.

1. Find your desired unit on our availability page. The vast majority of our available rental units are posted online by the last week of September.
2. If you are already familiar with your preferred rental unit, and/or you have sufficiently familiarized yourself with it via our online listing or YouTube Channel walkthrough video, you may choose to skip an in-person viewing appointment and proceed to step 4.
3. To view available rental units in-person once posted online, please call our office at 608-782-3776 to book an in-person appointment. When scheduling, you may view up to three (3) available rental units. We cannot schedule a showing sooner than 12 hours in advance because WI law requires us to notify tenants of entry in advance. Do not submit a rental application until you are prepared to pay a security deposit and sign a lease for your preferred rental unit.
4. Once you are certain which rental unit you want and are prepared to rent it, the first person in your group should find the specific unit on our availability page, click the "Apply" button and fully complete the online application. The initial applicant in the group enters any other occupant information while filling out the application, which emails any other occupants a unique link that groups co-applicants / roommates together in our system for faster application processing. Use your school email address if you have one, or if not, a non-student email address. Apply to only 1 rental unit. If we receive rental applications from the same person for multiple units, we will delete applications at our discretion. If we determine your preferred rental unit is no longer available, we will contact you to determine your interest in similar units. If you have rented before, provide references and rental history (students are exempt from this requirement unless applying for 1615 or 1615 1/2 Main St). Attach a copy of your student ID (if you have one), a valid driver's license, and proof of 3 month's worth of income (not required for students). An application fee applies to non-student applicants to cover the cost of a background / credit check - student applicants may check the box to "skip fees." Please see our help document for additional details.
5. Once Benson Management has received rental applications from all group applicants and approved them, generally within 3 business days, we will charge applicants a hold/security deposit equal to one month’s rent, and email instructions to make payment electronically using the online tenant portal. Applicants should coordinate with any roommates to pay the hold/security deposit in full, at which time the rental unit is temporarily reserved for the applicants pending lease signing.
6. Once the hold/security deposit payment has been received, within 3 business days we will email a lease to applicants for review and electronic signature, allowing 48 hours to receive all applicant signatures.
7. Once we have received all applicant signatures on the lease, within 3 business days we will countersign it, and tenants will receive a fully executed electronic copy (also available in their online portal). This completes the process of securing your preferred rental unit.