Tenancy application review for landlord approval

This workflow produces a landlord approval pack from a tenancy application, references and supporting documents. It is for lettings agents and property managers who need the landlord to make a recorded decision, rather than receive an unstructured bundle of files.

The pack separates what the documents support from what is missing, inconsistent or still needs an answer. The landlord decides whether to proceed under your firm’s process.

1. Create one case file before you review

Make a folder or case record with the property address, applicant names, proposed tenancy start date and the person responsible for the review. Give the case a unique reference that appears on every page of the final pack.

Add an evidence index before reading the documents. Use one row per item:

Evidence item	Received	Source date	Review status
Application form	Yes or no	Date shown	Read or pending
Identity evidence	Yes or no	Date shown	Checked under your process or pending
Employment reference	Yes or no	Date received	Read or pending
Income evidence	Yes or no	Period covered	Read or pending
Previous landlord reference	Yes or no	Date received	Read or pending
Guarantor documents, if proposed	Yes or no	Date shown	Read or pending

This index stops a common failure: treating an absent document as though it had been checked and was satisfactory.

Keep only material needed for the approval task. Application files can contain personal information that is not relevant to the landlord’s decision. Follow your firm’s access, retention and redaction process. Do not paste full identity numbers, bank account details or other unnecessary personal data into the prompt or the final pack.

2. Extract facts with their source attached

Read each document and enter facts into a structured review sheet. Do not start by asking the model for a recommendation. First create a record that can be traced back to a page, email or reference response.

Use these sections in the sheet:

• Proposed tenancy: property, rent, term, start date, occupants and any proposed conditions.
• Applicant declarations: employment, stated income, current address, previous addresses, pets, smoking, adverse credit or other declarations made on the form.
• Reference evidence: referee name, organisation, date received, employment status, stated income or affordability information, tenancy conduct information and any limitations in the reply.
• Supporting evidence: document type, period covered, name shown and the fact it supports.
• Contact record: who was contacted, when, by what method and whether the response was received directly.

For each entry, include a source label such as Application form, page 3, Employer email, 14 May or Bank statement, period ending 30 April. If a source does not state something, write Not stated. Do not replace it with an assumption.

3. Run a separate inconsistency check

Compare the fields that should agree across documents. Keep this as a distinct task, because a fluent summary can hide a mismatch.

Check, at minimum:

Compare	Look for	Record it as
Applicant name	Spelling, middle names, former names	Match, variation explained, or unresolved
Current address	Application against address evidence	Match, date gap, or unresolved
Employer	Application against employer reference	Match, different employer, or pending confirmation
Income	Declared figure against reference and evidence	Supported, differs, period unclear, or missing
Tenancy dates	Application against prior reference	Continuous, gap explained, or unresolved
Occupants and pets	Application against proposed tenancy details	Match or confirmation needed

Write inconsistencies as neutral questions. For example: The application gives employment start date as 1 February. The employer reference gives 1 March. Please confirm the correct date and provide supporting evidence if needed. Do not decide which document is right unless one source directly corrects another.

4. Ask the model to draft the pack from your review sheet

Use the evidence index and structured sheet as the input, not a loose collection of screenshots and emails. Document-handling features and available controls can vary, so check the xAI documentation overview before choosing how to provide files.

Use a prompt that fixes the output sections and prohibits inference. For example:

Create a landlord approval pack for case [reference].

Use only the evidence provided. Do not infer missing facts, assess character,
or make a decision for the landlord.

Return these sections in this order:
1. Proposed tenancy
2. Confirmed facts, with source beside each fact
3. Evidence received
4. Missing evidence
5. Inconsistencies or date gaps
6. Questions to resolve, each with the person to contact
7. Landlord decision record

Use “Not evidenced” where the documents do not support a point. Keep each
issue separate. Do not repeat a fact in the missing-evidence section.

Provide the source-labelled sheet beneath the prompt. Review the draft before putting it in front of the landlord.

5. Add a decision page the landlord can complete

Put a short decision record at the front or end of the pack. It should not disguise your notes as the landlord’s decision. Include:

• Case reference and property address.
• Applicant or applicant group.
• Date the pack was prepared and the preparer’s name.
• A statement that the landlord has reviewed the listed evidence and unresolved points.
• Decision choices: Proceed, Proceed subject to stated conditions, Request further information, or Do not proceed.
• Space for conditions or reasons in the landlord’s own words.
• Landlord name, decision date and the recorded approval method used by your firm.

If your process requires a particular check, approval route or wording, add it as an internal checklist item. This pack is an administrative record, not a substitute for your firm’s compliance process or advice from a qualified person.

6. Check the pack for signs it is wrong

A polished pack can still be unreliable. Test it against the original evidence, not against how convincing the prose sounds. Pick five facts from the Confirmed facts section and find the exact source for each. Then pick every item in Missing evidence and confirm that the item is absent from the evidence index.

Treat these as warning signs:

• A precise figure appears with no document and date beside it.
• The pack says a reference is satisfactory, but does not say what the referee actually confirmed.
• A name, address or date appears in the summary but not in the review sheet.
• One question asks for several unrelated answers.
• The draft calls an issue resolved without recording the reply that resolved it.

When the pack does not work

If the draft mixes facts and concerns, return to the review sheet and label every line with one of four statuses: Supported, Missing, Inconsistent or Question. Then generate the pack again from that labelled sheet.

If evidence remains incomplete, do not fill the gap with a general statement. Leave it in Missing evidence, assign a named follow-up action and send the landlord a pack that makes the unresolved point visible. Record the landlord’s response through your normal case process.