Wishing you a very happy and relaxing Labor Day!

California has a easy legal occupancy formula. The state allows two people per bedroom, plus one more. For example, a one-bedroom apartment can accomodate three people.

Naturally Castle sticks to the letter of the law when renting apartments. But we have other considerations, too — like parking. We might be able to offer one or two stalls per apartment, and if a resident has three cars, that's a problem. We screen for cars, and when prospective residents have too many we encourage them to explore other options.

Our comprehensive screening process does more than ensure that tenants will pay the rent and be good neighbors; it's essential for maintaining comfortable communities with fairly-allocated resources. While abiding by federal, state, and local fair-housing laws, we balance the number of residents per apartment with what our properties can support.

One way of doing this is by pooling applicants. In a hot market, we'll choose the best applications from an open-house weekend. It gives everyone a fair shake, and helps build a community that stands the test of time.

That's our job. That's smart business. That's the Castle Difference.