3 ms·

> rent an apartment we may be _required_ to have a credit score. Even if we offer to pay the full term's rent up front. Well to be fair, offering the full term

by dwild 7y ago

> rent an apartment we may be _required_ to have a credit score. Even if we offer to pay the full term's rent up front. Well to be fair, offering the full term rent up front to avoid a credit check seems sketchy as hell. Did you still let him do a credit check? He could have use this to verify your identity. I know a virtual bank in Canada that use them for that (if you refuse, they simply ask you to go do an identity check in a Canada Post).

jlokier 7y ago
Well, what are you supposed to do if you would fail the credit check (but pass the identity check)? Live nowhere? Because if you won't pass the credit check for one property agency, you won't pass for any of them. I've been in that situation. I had to pay 14 months rent up front. Crazy thing is I had the money and could pay it fine, but I couldn't pass a credit check to pay exactly the same amount monthly. Actually the crazier thing is they required 12 months rent up front again, for the second year. You'd think by then I'd have a track record of paying rent. All because paying rent for many years does not count towards credit rating, even though it's highly regular and the single largest outgoing for most people. (Paying mortgage does count. Annoying.)
- thestepafter 7y ago
  I am very surprised that they allowed you to pay rent up front. This creates a huge liability for them because at least in the United States it becomes almost impossible to evict you.
- dwild 7y ago
  I have an hard time understanding your point. Sure I agree that paying rent should count towards credit rating, but that's not an argument against credit rating. A bad credit rating means that it's a bad idea giving you a unsecured loan... that's all. An apartment is sadly pretty close to a loan, even more so with all the renter protection you get out of it. Paying the full rent in theses cases make sense then. My point is that in the lostphilosopher case, it was maybe simply used as an identity check, making sure it wasn't from a criminal. The resulting credit score wouldn't matter because of the full rent. > You'd think by then I'd have a track record of paying rent. Well, if they feel safer that way, again make sense. Why won't you personally give me a loan? The same apply to that case.
  - jlokier 7y ago
    > An apartment is sadly pretty close to a loan, even more so with all the renter protection you get out of it. A place to live is also a basic life necessity. Something is very wrong in a society where a "bad credit rating", which can arise from many things (some of them having nothing to do with credit - agency malpractice comes to mind), threatens homelessness _even when you can afford to rent_.
lostphilosopher 7y ago
I did the credit check - I didn't have a credit score, because I didn't want one. I had existing rental history, a drivers license, and W2s (all also required for the application). I don't think my identity was in question, but maybe it was? Regardless I rented at another place that didn't require a score, it all worked out.
- mike22 7y ago
  Seems like most rental properties don’t report payments to the credit bureaus. The service my current landlord uses for online payments has an option to report payments to TransUnion. As far as failure to pay rent, I guess one’s judgements in housing court would come up in the background check.
- dwild 7y ago
  Then I agree completely, it was pretty shitty of them and I don't understands at all their reasoning.

by dwild 7y ago

jlokier 7y ago

Well, what are you supposed to do if you would fail the credit check (but pass the identity check)? Live nowhere? Because if you won't pass the credit check for one property agency, you won't pass for any of them. I've been in that situation. I had to pay 14 months rent up front. Crazy thing is I had the money and could pay it fine, but I couldn't pass a credit check to pay exactly the same amount monthly. Actually the crazier thing is they required 12 months rent up front again, for the second year. You'd think by then I'd have a track record of paying rent. All because paying rent for many years does not count towards credit rating, even though it's highly regular and the single largest outgoing for most people. (Paying mortgage does count. Annoying.)

thestepafter 7y ago
I am very surprised that they allowed you to pay rent up front. This creates a huge liability for them because at least in the United States it becomes almost impossible to evict you.
dwild 7y ago
I have an hard time understanding your point. Sure I agree that paying rent should count towards credit rating, but that's not an argument against credit rating. A bad credit rating means that it's a bad idea giving you a unsecured loan... that's all. An apartment is sadly pretty close to a loan, even more so with all the renter protection you get out of it. Paying the full rent in theses cases make sense then. My point is that in the lostphilosopher case, it was maybe simply used as an identity check, making sure it wasn't from a criminal. The resulting credit score wouldn't matter because of the full rent. > You'd think by then I'd have a track record of paying rent. Well, if they feel safer that way, again make sense. Why won't you personally give me a loan? The same apply to that case.
- jlokier 7y ago
  > An apartment is sadly pretty close to a loan, even more so with all the renter protection you get out of it. A place to live is also a basic life necessity. Something is very wrong in a society where a "bad credit rating", which can arise from many things (some of them having nothing to do with credit - agency malpractice comes to mind), threatens homelessness _even when you can afford to rent_.

lostphilosopher 7y ago

I did the credit check - I didn't have a credit score, because I didn't want one. I had existing rental history, a drivers license, and W2s (all also required for the application). I don't think my identity was in question, but maybe it was? Regardless I rented at another place that didn't require a score, it all worked out.

mike22 7y ago
Seems like most rental properties don’t report payments to the credit bureaus. The service my current landlord uses for online payments has an option to report payments to TransUnion. As far as failure to pay rent, I guess one’s judgements in housing court would come up in the background check.
dwild 7y ago
Then I agree completely, it was pretty shitty of them and I don't understands at all their reasoning.