Credit Reports and Apartment Hunting
Your credit report indicates to a landlord your credibility. In an economy such as ours, landlords may be more lenient feeling pressured to secure a tenant. Usually your credit report determines your reliability and therefore your eligibility.

Bad Credit and Renting

You are more likely to get approved for a rental agreement with bad credit than for a mortgage.  The leasing manager may ask you for a higher security deposit to off-set the risk of a broken lease, or ask you to pay your first and last month's rent in advance.

Corporate-run apartment  complexes often have  stricter rules about  bad credit than a  private leaser; if you  are having trouble getting  an apartment, consider renting straight from  an owner, rather than  a management company.

Using a real estate agent will also put you in a stricter position for approval of a lease.

Apartment Lease Approval

You should follow your credit report regularly and before seeking approval for a lease agreement you should check it.  Make sure that the leasing manager is not surprised by a bad credit report either. Get a copy of your report in advance and go over it thoroughly.

 If there are mistakes or discrepancies, notify the creditor in question and have the notation removed or use a credit repair specialist to help. Our credit repair professionals can take you through the necessary steps to clean up your credit report, as well as give you further education on how to keep your finances in order.  If you are up front and honest about your financial past, you may have a better chance of securing a lease with a bad credit history.