What Information Do Apartments See When Checking Credit?

Part of the process of getting a rental property typically involves getting a credit check. When a landlord runs your credit, he can gain valuable information about your past and whether you will be a good tenant or not. When this type of credit check is run, the landlord can find out about your other accounts and payment history.

Running a Credit Check

When the landlord wants to run a credit check on you, he has to get permission first. You will need to sign a document that states you give the landlord permission to run a credit check. Once you have signed the document, the landlord can then run a credit check. This is a "hard" inquiry, which means you are essentially inquiring about credit. This means that it can affect your credit score, so you should not allow too many of these checks as they can lower your credit score.

Judgments

When a landlord runs your credit report, he can see if you have any judgments against you. For example, if you have filed for bankruptcy in the past, it will show up on your credit report if it happened in the last 10 years. If you have defaulted on any credit cards or any other type of debt, it can also show up on the credit report. If you have several judgments, this could reflect negatively upon you in the eyes of the landlord.

Evictions

In your credit report, the landlord can also find out if you have any evictions on your record. If you have been evicted from a previous apartment or rental unit, your previous landlord could have put this in your credit report. If you have been evicted recently, this will make it difficult to get an apartment. Most landlords will not want to open the doors to you if you did not pay your rent with the last landlord.

Credit Accounts

On your credit report, the landlord can also see what types of credit accounts you have open. For example, your report will have information about the various credit cards, loans and store accounts that you have set up. The landlord can see how much debt you have in relation to the available credit balances. The landlord can also see your payment history with each account to make sure that you pay your bills on time. This could be relevant when making a decision on a rental property.