Many people have asked the question to us: Can I rent an apartment after I have been evicted?
While it is exponentially easier to rent an apartment if you have a clean record and good credit, it isn’t absolutely impossible to rent an apartment if you have been evicted sometime in your past.
How Does Eviction Effect Renting?
If you have been evicted, that eviction, most times along with the reason for eviction, is going to show up on your background and credit check as a red flag. Institutions who lend money like banks and people who lend out their assets to be used, such as landlords, are looking for stability and no history of problems. They are simply running a business and are looking for the lowest risk for the highest return.
An eviction puts an applicant in a “high-risk” category. Unfortunately, in many cases, evictions can end up becoming chronic and don’t just stop with the first time. They tend to happen again and again unless the applicant can show that they are in a completely different situation than they were when they were evicted.
Now, if the eviction was due to legitimate unfortunate circumstances and you believe that you would be a good tenant for the complex, then use the list of tools we give below to increase your chance in showing the landlord that you are, in fact, a good risk to take.
Can You Get An Apartment After Being Evicted?
Yes, you can definitely rent an apartment after you have been evicted, but it is going to be much harder than it otherwise would.
With the ease of landlords and reporting agencies being able to track and report the behavior of consumers, it is becoming easier and easier to check and see just what history the applicant has. If the background or credit check comes up with something definitive, the landlord is going to be much more hesitant to rent to you.
If for whatever reason, you were evicted from your previous apartment, or maybe from your apartment several years ago, they are going to have legitimate concerns that the same thing will happen at their complex as well.
Having an eviction is also more than likely going to affect the type of place you are going to be able to rent at as well. This means that instead of being able to go get a great apartment that is well taken care of with all the amenities you want, you may have to sacrifice some of those things just to be able to rent.
If you want to know the things you need to go in order to rent after being evicted, keep reading as we are going to go through step-by-step the things you need to do.
Does An Eviction Show Up On Your Background Check?
Yes. Evictions absolutely show up on your background checks. This is one of the primary reasons why landlords do background checks in the first place. They want to know what the applicant was like as a tenant in their previous unit, if they paid, and what the circumstances were if they did happen to be evicted.
If the reason is not something disclosed on a background or credit check like “failure to pay”, they are more than likely going to want to talk to your previous landlord to see what the situation is.
This is why it is ALWAYS good to be a good tenant while you are renting!
There is some light at the end of the tunnel though as far as your renting record and background check goes. After a period of 7 years, the eviction will be wiped off your record. The notices from collectors can actually stay on your record for a longer period of time depending on the circumstance and when they filled to collect money.
You can also work to get your record expunged by working with your previous landlord to pay up any outstanding debt. If you can satisfy the debt that the collectors are after, you can get a letter from your landlord saying you have fulfilled all financial obligations, and this will satisfy your next landlord when they see the mark on your credit check.
Sometimes, it was due to roommates moving out, or a family member moving out that caused the eventual eviction from the unit. But if you were on the lease, that means that it is going to go on your record as well. If you are willing to pay the obligation back to the landlord, you can clean up your credit and background check, making everything from renting an apartment to getting a loan for a car much, much easier.
How Can I Rent With An Eviction?
Look for apartments that don’t do credit and background checks
Smaller apartment complexes are statistically less likely to go through the hoops of having their tenants do credit and background checks because they tend to be much more hands-on than larger apartment complexes with on-site management.
Also, when you can deal directly with the owner, you can plead your case with them and convince them in a professional manner that you are worth taking the risk of renting to.
Be well-dressed and professional when you go to talk with them. Have all the documents you need with you when you complete the application or come to do a walkthrough. Having everything in order, while looking nice and speaking professionally is going to show the landlord that you would be someone they would like to rent to.
Give A Large Deposit
This doesn’t mean a large security deposit, but rather, a couple of months’ rent upfront. Your landlord is going to be hesitant to an applicant that has been evicted because they are worried that they are not going to pay the rent at some point during the lease. Paying a few month’s rent up front lessens this worry and risk the landlord is undertaking by renting to you and it shows that you do have the money to pay the rent on schedule and in full.
Paying a few months’ rent upfront also sends the signal that you make enough money to be able to afford the apartment on an ongoing basis. And because this is one of the primary concerns a landlord has, the ability of a tenant to pay, it is going to carry some serious weight.
Rebuild Your Credit Score
Remember that most of the marks on your credit score disappear after a period of 7 years. But there are things that you can do to increase your credit score.
First off, pay off all debt obligations that are out on you. If you have collections constantly pestering you to pay a previous obligation, do so. This is going to fulfill your outstanding debt and start raising your credit score.
Additionally, make certain that you are paying all of your bills in full and on time. This is going to prevent your score from going down even further and shows that you are a risk worth taking.
We love using Credit Karma to do this it’s free and very easy to get a better handle on where you stand with credit.
Get Some Great References
Having someone else vouch for you is one of the best ways that you can convince a landlord to take you on as a tenant. Someone else being willing to put their own reputation on the line for you is one of the strongest statements you can make.
Try to get people that are outside of your family to give these references, as they are going to carry much more weight. After all, family is family! Get your boss or someone at work write a short letter which details your character and professionalism in what you do, and why you would be a good tenant for the landlord.
But remember, these people are vouching for you, so make sure you live up to everything they say about you in their letter!
Have Someone Cosign The Lease
Your landlord is concerned about the risk they are taking with you if you have been evicted. They are going to be worried about losing money on the lease if they rent to you.
One of the best ways to counter this concern of theirs is to get someone to cosign the lease agreement with you. When you have another person on the lease, such as a family member or trusted friend, that gives the landlord another form of assurance that you will be able to pay the lease in full and on time. Another person not only says to the landlord that they trust you enough to sign the lease with them, and it also gives the landlord someone else to go to if, for whatever reason, the rent doesn’t get paid.
Getting a cosigner can be one of the most powerful persuasive tools you can use when trying to rent after being evicted.
You can rent an apartment after you have been evicted by doing the things we list above. However, we absolutely recommend that you strive to be an excellent tenant to avoid any situations like this in the first place.
