Renting with bad credit

[tiffany_twisted]

I'm looking for a new apartment with my boyfriend right now, and obviously the landlords want to do credit checks. My boyfriends credit is great, but mine is TERRIBLE, its around 610. I'm worried that a) the landlords inquiries will ding my credit even LOWER and b) it's going to hinder us from getting a place. Is there a good, professional way to approach this situation with landlords? I've been making sure to apply to all the ads that don't mention credit checks, haha.

Should I say nothing, and just hope for the best on each application? I've been really stressed about it, since we are probably going to have to live in a place thats a bit less nice because of me.

[indiegirl]

The best is to go through a place on craigslist or an app that just does a background check. Can't you just have your bf rent it all under his name (without you being involved) and you just pay him monthly for your portion?

I use www.avail.co and that's how I met my roomies. It's more for owners (I believe) not sure how the roomie side works.

[whirlerz]

Usually LL's want checks done on everyone occupying the unit..

My LL wouldn't care, which's why we have the skeevy clientele we have..mostly rents rooms, but rents apt's too.

619 isn't too terrible, as long as you don't have evictions or judgments, again depending on your area etc.

Good luck

[xxxGothBarbie]

Honestly girl I'm in the same boat as you with bad credit & my answer is to not try to rent an apt or even a room that requires a credit check. I know it's hard these days bc I'm seeing rooms for rent wanting these (which is stupid imo). Try looking for places that are almost desperate for people right now & who knows they may look the other way about the credit as long as you can prove that you have income rolling in, statements, etc. It's so hard I know Good Luck!

[slowpoke]

Property owners should be particularly careful selecting tenants when unemployment is high and government has deprived them of the ability to remove non paying tenants.

[charlie61]

Larger properties will tend to charge higher security deposits for lower credit, but may still accept you. Smaller management companies / independent rentals may be more concerned about credit, so it might help to offer more upfront (offer first month, last month, and a full month's rent as security deposit).

So I'd say, if you're dealing with a larger corporate structure, don't say anything. If you're renting from a small operation that does a credit check, i don't think it would hurt to acknowledge the situation subtly with an offer to lower their risk (e.g. "My boyfriend and i are so excited by the prospect of living here. I recently went through a bit of a rough spot during the pandemic, which affected my credit. I want to make sure you're comfortable having us as tenants. We are both currently employed full time, and would be happy to offer a higher upfront deposit.") or something to that effect.

I think a ton of people have been through rough times between 2008 and 2020. So i wouldn't include a sob story or anything that sounds like drama, and you'd want to keep it short, but it could help. You want to acknowledge their potential hesitation while also making it clear that you're confident, and that money isn't something they'll have to worry about with you. It's hard to kick renters out once they've signed on, so these smaller companies are being understandably very picky about the risk they take on.

[eagle2]

Have you rented before? If you have, and you paid your rent on time, you could ask previous landlords if you could use them for a reference.

[indiegirl]

Property owners should be particularly careful selecting tenants when unemployment is high and government has deprived them of the ability to remove non paying tenants.

So true. I am not supporting anyone who is renting from me thankfully. They still have income luckily. One has worked the entire pandemic and the other works at Smart and Final while relying on ex husband payments. If they couldn't pay and I was forced to keep them here for free, they can work in this industry like I do lol. Don't mean to sound cruel/mean but this house costs a lot to run (which is why they are here) and if I can supply them a source of income and I can do this job so can they.

If one ever couldn't pay I would give 30 days notice and say I'm selling the house so I could find a new roommate. I'm younger than all my roomies and sacrificed/spent far too much to support someone living for free.

[charlie61]

So true. I am not supporting anyone who is renting from me thankfully. They still have income luckily. One has worked the entire pandemic and the other works at Smart and Final while relying on ex husband payments. If they couldn't pay and I was forced to keep them here for free, they can work in this industry like I do lol. Don't mean to sound cruel/mean but this house costs a lot to run (which is why they are here) and if I can supply them a source of income and I can do this job so can they.

If one ever couldn't pay I would give 30 days notice and say I'm selling the house so I could find a new roommate. I'm younger than all my roomies and sacrificed/spent far too much to support someone living for free.

Yes, and i believe renters' rights are different (they have less of them) when the owner is living there. Renting a room while the landlord is also living there is different, legally, than a tenant renting an apartment in a complex.

[indiegirl]

Yes, and i believe renters' rights are different (they have less of them) when the owner is living there. Renting a room while the landlord is also living there is different, legally, than a tenant renting an apartment in a complex.

Interesting. I haven't looked into the legalities behind that. I've just been hoping they'd pay monthly.

[charlie61]

^Yeah, probably varies by state. But i think evictions work differently, as well as temperature requirements, etc. I mean usually when someone is renting a room, there isn't even an official lease. More of an unofficial House Rules situation. My partner knows more than i do about that, but i remember him mentioning it.

[AChildOfBoredom]

I lucked out in that the first place I rented had a really laid back landlord. I wasn’t 18 yet, so I couldn’t sign into an agreement. Once I turned 18, I did, and the landlord didn’t seem like he was going for it. The other roommates just said, “She’s already been here for a few months”, and he let it slide.

[slowpoke]

You could have, but it would have been voidable.

[AChildOfBoredom]

Yeah, but the landlord was pretty much like, “Well, fuck it then”.

[AChildOfBoredom]

Yeah, but the landlord was pretty much like, “Well, fuck it then”.

[tiffany_twisted]

Thank you all so much for your advice!! In a funny turn of events, we actually got the first place we applied for. The landlord commented on my credit but because I had fantastic landlord references and great (fake) employment references he let it slide

[SnuffleUffleGrass]

Thank you all so much for your advice!! In a funny turn of events, we actually got the first place we applied for. The landlord commented on my credit but because I had fantastic landlord references and great (fake) employment references he let it slide

Glad that turned out allright.

[PhatGirlDynomite!!!]

I'm looking for a new apartment with my boyfriend right now, and obviously the landlords want to do credit checks. My boyfriends credit is great, but mine is TERRIBLE, its around 610. I'm worried that a) the landlords inquiries will ding my credit even LOWER and b) it's going to hinder us from getting a place. Is there a good, professional way to approach this situation with landlords? I've been making sure to apply to all the ads that don't mention credit checks, haha.

Should I say nothing, and just hope for the best on each application? I've been really stressed about it, since we are probably going to have to live in a place thats a bit less nice because of me.

A trick Ive used to avoid hard inquiries in the past, was to bring up my credit score via my own account. I'd pull it up on my phone and then show it. I would also accept this as a property manager. If you get too many they start to effect your score for up to two years at a time. If you're sweet and persuasive many will agree to that. Some won't.. oh well then!

I'm happy to hear it worked out for you. We all deserve a clean, dignified and safe space to rest our heads.

[tiffany_twisted]

A trick Ive used to avoid hard inquiries in the past, was to bring up my credit score via my own account. I'd pull it up on my phone and then show it. I would also accept this as a property manager. If you get too many they start to effect your score for up to two years at a time. If you're sweet and persuasive many will agree to that. Some won't.. oh well then!

I'm happy to hear it worked out for you. We all deserve a clean, dignified and safe space to rest our heads.

Thank you again you guys! And yes, definitely take PhatGirlDynomite!!!'s tip for avoiding the hard inquiry if your credit is already low. That's what we did, and the property manager was fine with it.