Is my landlord legit?
Before signing a lease and handing over thousands, verify the management company is real.
2 API calls · $0.01How can I check if my Florida landlord is legitimate before signing a lease? You're about to sign a lease and wire first month + last month + security deposit. The listing says "managed by" an LLC you've never heard of. Before sending $4,500 to a stranger, one lookup confirms whether the company is real, how long it's existed, and whether the person you're dealing with is actually connected to it.
In this example, the lease names "Example Property Management LLC."
The lookup
L00000000002What you learn
The entity checks out. Before wiring money, confirm one thing:
- Does the person collecting your deposit match the officer on file?
- If "John Example" is on file but "Mike" is collecting — ask questions
- Wire to the LLC's bank account, never a personal Venmo or Zelle
If the person matches and the LLC is active with years of history, you're dealing with a real operation. Total cost of confirming: $0.01.
Red flags to watch for
How it's built
Two API calls, one API key. Search the company name from the lease, then check the detail for status, officers, and history.
# Step 1: Search the company name from the lease
# Replace "EXAMPLE+PROPERTY+MANAGEMENT" with the actual name
$ curl -s -H "x-api-key: $API_KEY" \
"https://api.sunbizdata.com/api/v1/corporations/search/name?name=EXAMPLE+PROPERTY+MANAGEMENT"
< 200 OK (32ms)
{ "results": [{
"documentNumber": "L00000000002",
"corporationName": "EXAMPLE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT LLC",
"status": "Active",
"fileDate": "02082019"
}], "total": 1 }
# Step 2: Get full detail — officers, annual reports, EIN
# Replace "L00000000002" with the documentNumber from step 1
$ curl -s -H "x-api-key: $API_KEY" \
"https://api.sunbizdata.com/api/v1/corporations/detail?documentNumber=L00000000002"
< 200 OK (39ms)
{
"corporationName": "EXAMPLE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT LLC",
"status": "Active",
"fileDate": "02082019",
"feiNumber": "00-0000000",
"officers": [
{ "title": "MGR", "type": "P", "name": "EXAMPLE JOHN" }
],
"annualReports": [
{ "year": "2026", "date": "01152026" },
{ "year": "2025", "date": "02032025" }
]
}// Check if a landlord/management company is legitimate
async function checkLandlord(companyName) {
const headers = { "x-api-key": process.env.SUNBIZDATA_KEY };
const search = await fetch(
`https://api.sunbizdata.com/api/v1/corporations/search/name?name=${companyName}`,
{ headers }
).then(r => r.json());
if (!search.results.length) return { legitimate: false, reason: "not found" };
const detail = await fetch(
`https://api.sunbizdata.com/api/v1/corporations/detail?documentNumber=${search.results[0].documentNumber}`,
{ headers }
).then(r => r.json());
const yearsActive = new Date().getFullYear() - parseInt(detail.fileDate.slice(4));
return {
legitimate: detail.status === "Active",
name: detail.corporationName,
yearsActive,
hasEin: !!detail.feiNumber,
officers: detail.officers.map(o => o.name),
reportsUpToDate: detail.annualReports.some(r => r.year === String(new Date().getFullYear())),
};
}Start with $5, get 1,000 requests
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