How can I clean up my credit and get into an apartment?
Hello Michael, I am trying to start over. I filed bankruptcy in 2008 and everything was discharged. I started building new credit up until 2012. I have credit cards charged off, maybe 5, and a repossession in 2013.
I relocated in 2011 to another state due to divorce and loss of job. I lived in an apartment for 2 years and that's when I relocated.
The complex knew about me leaving and we both agreed. I pulled my credit report last year 2014 and saw that the complex sent me to collections for a bill I never received for paint and carpet, which I would think that should be done regardless, because I was there for 2 years. I called the collection agency tried to settle for half of the bill just to get it off my credit. They said no - all or nothing - and even if I paid it would remain on my credit for 7 years.
I came back to Illinois in 2013 because my mom got sick. She passed in April of 2014. I now am trying again to start over, but with the rental recovery no one will rent to me. Please point me in the right direction for what i can do to clean up my credit.
How can I clean my credit when I need to move?
—deb
Is it the property management company that is reporting the unpaid clean up costs that were not covered by your security or cleaning deposit (if there was one)? Is it an outside third party debt collection agency that shows up for this debt? If you needed to, in order to put this behind you and get approved for a new rental, could you come up with some money to settle the old bill?
The answers to those question could change my feedback about how to approach cleaning your credit up.
Past Landlord Collections on Credit Can Be Overcome
Renting an apartment with collections and past landlord issues on your credit reports is not impossible. Your pool of properties to choose from will often shrink though.
6 ways I have seen past debt relief customers rent a place, even with terrible credit, have included:
- Be proactive and explain the past rental and collection issues up front. The smaller the property you may rent from, the likelier it may be that you can actually sit down with the person making the credit decisions. Write a well crafted letter that includes the details you need to cover, and include that with the application you submit.
- Rent a room from a local homeowner. The owner may not run your credit to approve you. And you have the highest chance of making a great impression in person when you meet to see the place, which can help you overcome credit objections.
- Renting a duplex or fourplex from the building owner that is an onsite tenant would have similar face to face benefits to renting a room.
- Lay down a larger deposit than what is being requested for the specific place you are submitting an application to rent from. And put the fact that you are willing to increase, or even double your deposit, right out there when you are talking to the owner or manager.
- Look for any discrepancy in what is being reported to the credit bureaus. Find an angle to dispute the most offending items off of your credit reports. More on this when you answer my questions about who is reporting in the comments section below.
- Hire a credit repair company.
Do not leave applications with the person at the front desk, or submit them online. Show up in person, and ask to speak to the property manager or owner. Dress well, keep great eye contact, and sell them on why you are a good choice as a tenant, regardless of what might be seen on your credit report.
Credit Clean Up Companies
There are credit repair companies out there that have some success cleaning up negative items off your credit reports. Some charge monthly fees that are reasonable, and others really soak you. Using a credit repair company for a few months to see if they can clean up a key derogatory over some minutia may be worth it. Just know going in that it can be difficult to get blatantly false information off your credit. If you do pay out for credit clean up, and you are trying to get something that is 100% accurate and current removed, you may not have any success.
You can clean up your own credit reports. It takes time just like hiring a credit repair agency would. There is nothing scientific to it, but it is something people will avoid doing for themselves.
I will have more to share once you post answers to the questions I posed above.
Anyone reading with questions or concerns related to credit report clean up and getting into a rental is welcome to post in the comments below for feedback.
About Michael BoveeMichael started CRN in 2004 with a mission to provide people in need with detailed debt and credit help and education. Michael has participated as an expert panelist in federal consumer protection rule making, collaborated on state law changes governing debt consolidation, has worked as an expert witness in court matters related to the debt relief industry. He is available to speak with you about your financial struggle and helps people resolve their debt problems daily.
I’m very new to renting and all the issues and key points that come with it 🙁 I have alot of collections right now that I didn’t know about till I was denied an apartment. Any advice/tips? I’m currently trying to find a different/better apartment right now, but worried about my collections
Depending on your situation you may need a cosigner, or more money to offer additional months rent paid in advance.
Hi I have a collection on my credit with IQ DATA from an apartment I lived in 3 years ago. I was young and didn’t know that you needed to give your apartment notice before moving out so once my lease ended I moved into a new apartment complex and was told by my previous apartment that I needed to give a 60 day notice before moving out and if I wasn’t going to pay 2 more months of rent they would consider me skipping out on my lease and now they’re charging me $3200 I’ve called the collections company and told them I could make a one time payment and settle for half which is $1600 and they stated the lowest they could settle for is $2200 I told them I wouldn’t be able to pay that and they stated then there’s nothing they can do. I’m looking to move into an apartment by the end of this year and want to know is there any other way to get this off of my credit?
Ho many conversations have you had with IQ Data about settling the debt?
I had a recent repossession but no issues with my prior rental apartment. I have applied to several places even to take over a lease and they said they couldn’t approve me due to the repossession that happened in June but it’s reported on my credit report as September. Would subleasing or getting a roommate help me with getting approved for an apartment?
Having a cosigner could help.
Subleasing options could have the same barrier you are experiencing now.
Is the repo on your credit showing an unpaid balance?
So i became fully disabled receiving SSDI (it took 9 months to get it) after having a major neck surgery that left me pretty much unable to do anything. I was 60 years old, worked all my life, paid my way thru college, never had a single blemish.I was 6 months into a 15 month lease. I’ve written to the agency collecting the $4900 they want, and they said they’d settle for $3600. I said that $3600 might as well be $36M. They don’t care about my circumstances, they just want money. If i had resources I’d be working to initiate some legislation for the ppl who find themselves in this trap. I can’t even get Section 8 housing with it, which seems odd, given the circumstances. These ppl are just a 1/2 a notch above Payday Loan scams. Nobody oversees them, they’re not accountable, and they’re unapproachable.
Hi! I’m in a bit of a pickle. I rented from an apartment from 2016 – 2018. Upon move-out inspection, they noted that the carpet would need to be replaced and would forward the bill to our new address. We received the bill for around $700 but we were broke from moving costs and set it aside to pay later. Lo and behold, time passed and we forgot about it. Now I applied to a new place and they denied me due to rental history. It’s not even on any of my credit reports. The problem is that the old apartment is not owned by the same management company. It’s not even under the same name. They have no records prior to the takeover. They passed me the number to Northland Investment Company, however, after six calls in the last two days, I have yet to receive an answer from them. I’ve been explicit that this is a time-sensitive issue, but I’m at a complete loss.
I would connect with a local tenants rights advocate to see what they recommend.
Hi there! I’m in the process of moving and I’ve forgotten to pay my last apartment moving out deposit and rent because i was moving so quickly; also it was my first apartment I was young and yes i have made mistakes. Are there any ways to be accepted to new places even with that on your record? If I pay it off will it be used against me? What can I do to get raid or pay off that debit? Any information will be helpful! Thank you!
I would try to negotiate a settlement with the old place. I would try to have a lump sum to pay it, so the credit can be updated quickly.
You could need half, or more of the balance.
Hi Michael, I’m David Moore and had to leave an apartment early by two weeks due to some financial issues. Unfortunately I didn’t clean it up in a timely manner like I should have. For the two years prior at this same apartment was always on time and the current lease in a different home never a day late two years running, pandemic and all. I’m now needing to find a rental and am concerned this collection will prevent me from getting a decent rental. Any thoughts?
If the collection is unpaid still, and you have the ability to resolve it by settling for less, I would do that.
Hi! I have a question about a rental balance that’s on my credit. I was living with my parents back in 2017. We were renting the apartment together. We had to move due to mold and water problems. We gave them notice and made the rent payment however, they still sent notice to a collection agency for 1300.00. My parents filled bankruptcy back in 2019 and the apartments collection was listed on it. It’s still showing up on my credit and on my little sisters credit. (She was 18 when we lived there) I’ve been helping my parents make monthly payments on their chapter 13 thinking I was helping them pay off the debt. Nothing has been paid on the apartment debt. If this account is in my parents bankruptcy but still showing under my credit, will I still be able to get an apartment? I called to make sure it wasn’t an eviction and the informed me that it was not.
Any unpaid debt on your credit can make it harder to rent an apartment compared to an applicant with clean credit.
If the unpaid debt is from a past apartment lease, it can be impossible to get approved for many places.
Good morning. I have contacted an apartment complex that I rented from back in 2018. They have sent it to collections and have started the process with court. The court hasn’t set a date as of yet. I called the apartments attorney and wanted to set up a settlement negotiations. I offered 1500 on a 2900 balance. The thing is they tacked on an extra amount of money which the balance is now 4000 and some change. They denied my offer and counter offered for $3000. They say once they make an offer that’s the lowest that they will go. Should I pay that 3000 or just wait for the courts to see if I can work out a amount with the judge?
Also if I get it removed from my credit report it will still show on the renters report right?
The judge is not who you will negotiate with. The court is there to decide if you owe or not. You can challenge the amount they say you owe and get proof through discovery of how that amount was determined. And in that way, the judge can impact amounts, but typically will not direct the plaintiff on whether to accept your settlement offer.
Where is the renters report pulling their information from?
I have an odd question as well. Five years ago I fell on hard times and lost my job and went on unemployment for a while. I was keeping up with my bills as best as I could. At first the apartment complex leasing agency was kind and worked with with me. I had to go to court and sign an agreement to pay a certain amount by or before October 1st of 2015. I was able to obtain two part-time jobs and met with / signed an agreement with their attorney and it was a legally binding stipulation court document stating that I needed to pay my back due rent debt and that I would be in good standing after that. Of course I paid everything (ended up being $4,000.00 all together including my $1,490.00 security deposit they kept).
The mind boggling thing is that 3 months later in December 2015 the same apartment complex leasing agency placed a collection against me but no one could provide evidence or an explanation as to why this was placed on me and 3 months later no less.
I moved in with family for a few years and now would like to get back on my own again. This collection is still on my credit report and I even recently tried to re-connect with the old leasing agency only to find out that they no longer exist, they were bought out by a different company and no one has my tenant information or court information on file (I still have all my physical court documents).
I called the new leasing agency and they couldn’t find my information. They told me to contact the old headquarters of the old leasing agency.
I called them and they didn’t have access to old tenant information either and had no clue how to obtain it. They were able to see my collections claim that was created but there was no evidence, no pictures, no court documents, nothing to validate who created the claim against me and exactly why it was created with evidence.
The headquarters of the old leasing agency recommended I call the attorney who took the case. I called the attorney who took the case and he too said the same thing. He could see the collections claim and the amount but did not have any information as to who created it and why. He recommended I call the collection agency again.
I called them and spoke with a representative who told me that they supposedly didn’t have the information for who created the claim but the reason just says “Rent/Damages”.
I’m thinking “how could this be??” because not only did I have court documentation, but I paid what was owed and then some which would have been more than enough to cover my rent for four months. Plus if it was discovered that I had not paid what was due in the legally binding court judgment stipulation then there would have been more legal court documentation that ensued and that would be available today stating that I signed a legally binding stipulation contract and failed to abide by it and next steps were taken which I’m assuming would have been more court hearings.
I also find it odd that 3 months after I move out is when “someone” decides to put me into collections for “Rent/Damages” but doesn’t include any evidence as to how they came to their conclusion. Sounds fishy to me.
Anyway long story short, the old company doesn’t exist anymore, no one from the old or new company can help me because none of my information is in their databases and now the new company won’t call me back (maybe they’re scrambling to figure out why this really happened to me. I told them I’m not interested in reparations I just want to move easily in peace without this collections item on my report)
Is the collection showing with a balance still unpaid, or with a zero balance owed?
Hi Michael,
I am looking into renting an apartment, I have a little one on the way and need my own place. I got evicted from my first rental in the ending of 2018, they gave me a week, in the middle of a winter storm, during Christmas to get out. I was unable to get all of my things removed due to not having anywhere to put it with such short notice of eviction, along with not being able to clean up at all. They are now charging me almost 8000 dollars in collections and I’m terrified I won’t be able to even rent a apartment with all of that being on my Credit report. I just want some place safe for me and my family to live, seeing as me and the father have been homeless since thee eviction.
It will be hard to get accepted in a new place with this other debt unresolved.
There may be local resources that can assist. See if there is a local housing counseling or tenants rights organization that can point you to anything helpful in your area.
You may need to pay more upfront to get in a place, or even a lease cosigner.
Hi I am living in 2018 I had to move out due to roommates leaving and I couldn’t afford it on my own. I put in a notice but I was unable to pay the rest of the rent. I was sent to collections and last year paid my debt off through credit collectors. I’m living in a complex now where I paid a bigger deposit to move in, in April 2020. The problem is now because my upstairs neighbor flooded her apt., and I guess it being an older complex there living conditions are now unhealthy due to mold. mildew. and some sort of bugs started to appear. I am planning to move again but I’m curious if the old apartment is still showing up on my credit. I did pay it off last year June, but it was still on my credit with this apartment. The creditor sent me a letter for proof of payoff but shouldn’t it be completely removed from my credit since I paid it off? I’m not sure what to do can you explain.
It can take 7 years, from when you stopped paying the bill originally, for it to age off your credit. More on that here: https://consumerrecoverynetwork.com/question/collection-accounts-age-off-credit-reports/
Hi Michael,
I was recently denied approval for an apartment because I have a collection account from an old apartment complex that I never lived in. I was going to move in as a lease take over, but backed out last minute and the apartment complex sent me to collections for it. In order to get approved for another apartment, do I need to just settle with the collection company or do I need to ask them to delete the line credit as well? I don’t want to pay them and then still get declined for an apartment after that effort. What’s you advice in the matter?
I would talk to the place you are applying to, explain the situation, and ask what their policy is after you take care of the old debt.
I have a tricky & complicated question about medical bills. At the end of Aug 2018 I was hospitalized for a week w/severe sepsis & had was ultimately diagnosed with stage 3b high -grade sarcoma. I lost my job of 8 years & my car was repoed, a few months later. Over the next few months after my diagnosis I had 2-CT’s, MRI, Biopsy, another surgery, home healthcare (6 months), I was on a machine for 4.5 months & needed supplies for my wound changes. Each item was pre-approved with my medical insurance beforehandCV over the next few months. Then my previous employer decided to send in a cancelation for my medical insurance & requested it be backdated 60 days for the cancelation & the insurance carrier complied.
On Nov. 25, 2018, I received a letter from my insurance carrier saying unless I paid them 1400 dollars by the end of Nov (5 days) my insurance would be canceled back to 9/1/18 & all cost incurred even if they pre-approved would not be NOT be paid. Well I couldn’t pay it & ultimately ended up on Obomacare with premium subsidies for my desperatly needed insurance. My issue s with the 2 months backdated (Sept 1st-Nov 30th) medical bills that I incurred for all these procedures and my repo that was also done during this 2 month period. What makes it worse, for example, is if I had a biopsy done at the hospital iit doesnt just process one bill. I get a like 5 bills from different companies. One for the radiology department for the machine, one from the doctor who performed the biopsy, one from hospital for the recovery dept, one from the outside company who gets slides prepared & another one for the pathologist. A bill for the rented machine I was attached to for months,vanother from the same company but different manufacturer for the woundcare expensive supplies & one for home healthcare, etc….. being I had several procedures during that 2 months you can only imagine home many medical bills that accumulated.
I’ve never owned a home and this 2 year cancer experience along w/ 5 trips to Houston & 3 trips to Georgia, has ultimately really deepened my desire to own a home for the 1st time at in my 42 years. I am currently on SSDI due to my cancer which just went into remission.
I qualify for the HUD NA section 184 home loan. This is a fantastic loan, it’s a 100% guaranteed loan, with the lowest daily interest rate for the day, and a VERY low downpayment 1.5% under 50,000 & 2.5% over 50,000, with no credit score requirements,
There is re some demands like I can’t have tax liens or open judgements (I currently don’t).
Also, all these medical bills (some have moved to collection). They cant recover any money from me being I’m on disability, but I cant have any outstanding collections on my report for the loan. I heard that medical bills are not treated the same as other collectors, is this true, if so how are they treated and do you have any opinions on getting me out of this 2 month insurance & repo nightmare?
My previous credit was very thin. No credit cards or recent payment history due to no revolving accounts except my car that was repoed.
My concern is also with the repo, not sure if there is some kind of way to ask for a tramatic event circumstance to have the remaining 2,000 not recovered at auction dropped and removed (loan was with Chase)? I heard of people requesting these before, but not sure how to do it?
I dont feel that my employer nor my insurance did right by me but fighting them is worse then fighting the cancer & I don’t have the mental ability at this time. Any info would be great! Thank you!
I see the deficiency balance on the car loan is 2k, but what do the medical collections add up to?
Hi, i’ve cleaned up my credit and paid all (3 charge-off accounts from 4+ years ago, accounts opened in college), they are now listed as “paid, closed.” My FICO 8 scores for experian (628), equifax (601), transunion (594 – not updated). Vantage scores are equifax (727), transunion (694). I an authorized user on a card with a high limit (utilization kept below 10%), pay student loans on time. I want to apply for an apartment but i’m afraid that the derogatory marks will prevent me from qualifying for any housing.
You won’t know until you apply. After all the clean up you did, if it was really recent, a little time can help those scores, but that is not helpful if you need to apply for a place now.
Sometimes being able to put down a larger deposit will get you through the door.
Hello Michael,
I recently noticed I had a charge off on my credit report. I have never received the bill from the credit card company. When I called the number to see what address they had it was correct with the exception that is had the wrong apartment #. The credit I received was for eyeglasses and I do in fact owe the money. Not long after applying for the credit I had a medical issue that tied me up for a few months and I did forget about credit especially since I had not received a bill. I am willing to pay the full balance in one shot however I would like to have it removed from credit report because I had not received a bill. Can you please give me some guidance on how I can do this. I’m not sure who to contact the original creditor or the collection agency. Which has the ability to remove it from my credit report? I am willing to pay extra if needed.
Thank you in advance for your help.
Sincerely,
Lakiesha
You will want to call the lender directly and share these details, and the address problem.
You will likely want to escalate your concerns to managers.
Who is the credit card company?
I have been planning to buy an apartment because I will be moving out of my townhouse. I guess you’re right; it’ll be smart to explain my past rental and collection issues to my future landlord. I’ll also keep in mind to place a larger deposit more than what’s being asked to gain their trust.
Hello Michael I have recently tired to apply for a apartment and I end up finding out that my apartment complex had send me to collection and I was not in a lease and was not aware of it and now I tried to applied to an apartment and they told me I had a balance on my account and now I am not able to get a hold of my previous apartment manager because she wont answer my calls at all and I have left voicemail but have not had a response back from her. I was wondering if you were able to guide me the right way to see how I can go about doing this
What is the goal when you reach the apartment manager?
Michael since I currently have a low credit score due to a foreclose last year, can I buy a house with cash under my llc then loan the money to myself to pay off in installments to generate positive credit? Thank you!
You can certainly buy a house with cash under a legal entity. I don’t know that I would take the tact you mention to rebuild credit. Check out this post about rebuilding credit scores after foreclosure and the like.
Hi MIchael,
I’m hoping you can help me. In 2010 we had to break our lease to move out of state to care for a sick family member, the landlord let us out of our lease and said we would only owe 2 months worth of rent. We agreed to pay that and she stated she’d send us a bill. About 6 months later we contacted her because we heard absolutely nothing form her. She told us she sent us to collections and refused to settle with us and call of the collection agency–to the tune of over $3,000–replace flooring, carpet, painting, and cleaning. Mind you we painted and paid a professional carpet cleaner to steam the carpets but we still expected not to receive our deposit back. When we first moved into our apartment our next door neighbor came over and introduced himself, he told me that him and his wife used to previously live in our unit and were transferred to the unit they were currently in because of a bad black mold problem and the complex had gutted and remodeled the unit–we were the first tenants to move into this “remodeled” unit. We are discovering that when they remodeled the unit that they never really got rid of the mold problem (which we heavily experienced and I documented with time stamped photos). When we finally received an itemized bill, we noticed that we got soaked for the charges to replace flooring and carpet due to mold–basically we got billed for repairs that were never done correctly the first time-before we had even moved in. I’ve tried disputing this on my credit report to no avail. This bill went to collections in April 2011, as of Jan of 2017 the total amount is over $6,000 now! There can’t be any possible way that we racked up over $3,000 in interest charges and late fees?! We’ve lived in our current unit for almost 5 years and have consistently paid rent on time, but the apartments were sold to a private owner and are being turned into condos therefore we have to move in a month. We are being rejected left and right by everyone because of this debt, its been 6 years now and I”m at a loss as to what we do. Housing should be a basic human right and we’re being denied that right and its frustrating. We’ve done everything suggested in your article (being open and honest and up front about debts owed, even offering deposits equivalent to three months rent and still get told no). The collection company is IQ Data International, I’m almost certain they are illegally inflating the amount owed (unless its entirely possible to accrue $3,000 in interest and late fees over a 6 year period). My question is: do I have any rights when it comes to this? is there anything I can do to have this removed? My husband and I and are 3 small children are now looking at renting a motel room to live in which is frustrating when we’re both college grads who make really good money but this collection is literally destroying us. Thank you in advance for any advice you may have. Oh, and the apartment we rented was in Everett, WA. Thank you.
Try an connect with any state or local housing and rental advocates in Washington and see what they can share with you. Also connect with the same types of organizations in your current state and see what they can recommend. This ages off your credit reports in a year, and it may be worth disputing with the credit reporting agencies with the hope that they delete it due to inaccuracies.
Private owners are who I would focus on, and not property management companies.
In 2012, 7 months in to a 1 year lease on an apartment, I had the opportunity to purchase a house for a smaller mortgage payment than the apartment rent was. After much back and forth with the apartment complex (managers were changed in the middle of the process, and deals made with the first weren’t honored by the successor) the remaining 5 months of rent were sent to collections.
It’s now 2017 and the collection shows that it should fall off in 2019, but I have since gotten divorced and need to refinance my home to remove my ex-husband ASAP. The rental account was only in my name, and remained entirely with me when we divorced.
I will be financially capable of paying between 50-60% of the debt within the next month or so, but I’m not sure how best to do so. I’d prefer to deal directly with the apartment complex if possible. The entire amount showing, even after substantial interest, is less than 4k.
I’m located in Colorado and Wakefield & Associates is the collections agency.
Is it possible, this many years out, to deal directly with the apartment complex? If not, how best to go about dealing with the collections agency? They’ve never called me, and I haven’t received a bill in probably 4 years – it just shows up on my credit report.
If the account is with a debt collection agency, whether the original owner or management company still owns the debt or the sold it, you typically have to deal with the collection company. You can certainly start by reaching out to the original owner/management.
You should be able to come to some king of arrangement to pay less and get your credit updated. It is less of a tip off if you have not already had your credit run for the refinance yet.
I am a disabled mother of three, one of which is also disabled… I worked diligently for four years cleaning up my credit. We lived in an apartment for a year and a half, I never was late on a payment. They decided they wanted to change from a year’s lease to a month to month… Three months after my one year lease was up, they asked that I be out by the first of the next month due to my being non-compliant with the guy who came to spray for bed bugs (I had to take my son to an emergency appt with the endocrinologist and I was back before the guy left, I even asked if I needed to move anything and he said no…)… I kept my apt very clean (verified by the behavior therapists that came to see my son) I was told the carpet had been replaced prior to our moving in and found out it hadn’t been by a reliable neighbor and the fact that the carpet on the stairs was worn through by the month after we lived there.. I have never received a bill from them although I’ve asked.. I am trying to purchase the house we are living in and, even with their bill, my score is 712, 684 and 710 per different sites… I just tried to get a credit card because I’ve never had a credit card and was turned down because of the bill on there…. The bill is for $1200 which may not seem like a lot to other people’s standards, but we don’t have much which is why I am trying to buy this house so I could get our house payment down… I have no idea what to do and don’t even know if I can afford an attorney… I even had several people tell me they thought we were told to move because my son is autistic and the fact I had asked for a downstairs apt due to my mobility issues… We never caused problems there, we tried to help other people out as much as we could, I don’t understand why they won’t give me the bill so I can see what I’m being charged for… Do you have any ideas on what I should do?
Does your city have a housing control, or renters rights office? I would start by contacting them. Is there a collection agency involved, and if so, what is the name of the company? That could open up some additional suggestions.
Hello Michael,
I am a recent college graduate who lost his job two years ago when everything went haywire. I have paid off 4 of my 5 accounts at this point. The last was a lease that got repossessed. I recently set up a payment plan to resolve the issue with their collection agency. How bad will this hurt my chances of getting the apartment? My credit score has crawled back up to around 648 and I can provide documentation of the payment plan agreement when I go on the interview. Will this help? Is there anything I can do in preparation to help my chances besides having a good interview?
An extra amount to put down as deposit or pay an extra months rent in advance will help your chances.
How would I go about cleaning up my own credit..had to move out of an apartment because I lost my job…it is now showing that I owe them $8000 on my credit report
How long ago was it that you left that apartment?
What state are you in?
I left a complex perfectly clean except for the fire place.
Then I get hit for carpet that should have been replaced years before. and other items.
I take pride in clean.
I lived in an apartment with a girlfriend 5 years ago. We split, I tried to get my name of the lease but she wouldnt agree to it. I havent heard of owing a debt until me and my current gf applied for an appartment and were denied because I had an outstanding balance with an apartment.
The gf had abandoned the apartment we lived in and didn’t pay rent or something. I looked into the debt, called the collection agency that had my debt, they told me I owed $4000+ and that my ex wasn’t listed on the debt, just me. Did more digging, got a credit history report, the report shows I only owe $722. I went to the apartment to talk to someone about it but the complex is owned by a different company now, and they had no amswers for me except the name of the company that previously owned the complex. I tried looking into contacting them with no luck. The debt collector doesn’t appear on my credit history, just the failure to appear in court (which i never received a summons to court) with the name of the apartment complex.
It would be a good idea to talk over your situation with an experienced debt collection defense attorney. Let me know your state and I can email you some contacts I know have the experience to help you consider your next step.
I live in Tucson, Arizona.
Can you please send me some defense attorneys as well to [email removed]. The same thing is happening to me.
Check out the National Association of Consumer Advocates.
I live in Denver CO. Last year in Oct and Nov I was late paying my rent, to where the apartments complex filed papers with the county court. Now I am trying to rent an apartment and the new apartment complex told me they can’t rent to me because I have 2 judgments on my history. My question is….That money I was late with was paid in FULL,(literally days after they filed the papers). Doesn’t a judgment mean you still owe them money?? I pulled my credit report and this doesn’t show up on my actual report so they must have pulled a consumer report.
I am at a loss and I don’t know what to do. How can I find an apartment complex that will rent to me??
Can you outline the chronology of events in a comment reply?
You did not pay rent on time, were sued, how long before you paid the lawsuit amount? Did you pay the full amount?
When did you leave the apartment that was part of the lawsuit?
Why are there 2 judgments, and not just one?
Okay, so here is my story if you could help. Back in 2012, I went in to give my landlord a 30 day notice with a statement saying I was breaking my contract early do to Military reasoning. So wouldn’t take it.this was April 1st, 2012. I moved out April 27th, 2012 after cleaning out and painting that apartment. I turn in my keys April 27 and was told I was good to go. I have two friends that were there to witness everything. Two years later I discovered this apartment on my Credit claiming I owe $3,017.65. Now I was told I should be protected under the Sailor & Soldier act on breaking the contract. Manager claims I didn’t give notice and that I didn’t move out until May 9th, 2012. Ithe took me over a year to get this collection Agency called I Data to seen me a bill and I have requested that they send me a copy of the actual receipt proving that they paid these cleaners and painters to come in as I know that they just have theiron all maintenance do it. He said he would and it’s been like 4 months and I still have gotten anything. So I owe money for rent, painting, cleaner etc. apparently. They also charge interest apparently and want well over $4k. What can I do as I can’t get it disputed even when it contains incorrect information? Oh and they don’t do settlement either. I’m in Ca, so it’s at a point where they can’t come after me, but I still have 3 years before it hits the 7 year mark. A home loan seem so far away and the house were in now is gonna be sold.
I would encourage you to file a complaint against the apartment complex and any collection agency with the CFPB: https://consumerrecoverynetwork.com/filing-complaints-with-the-cfpb/
Focus on your active military status at the time, the shape you left the place, and the bogus notice date they made up. I would Have your witnesses write up statements of events and submit those with the complaint if it were me.
It could take a couple weeks to hear back. Let me know what happens.
HI Michael,
I have a few questions.
1) I am working on cleaning up my credit and improving my credit score. I am trying to rent an apartment and I am worried that my lack of credit/negative credit will be the deciding factor to whether or not I am approved. I only have 4 lines of credit on my reports.
2 open, in good standing. (credit card & student loans)
1 closed in good standing (auto loan)
1 charged off/collections (credit card)
My question is this: Would the charged off account be enough to keep me from renting since I am limited on my actual lines of credit?
and
2)
The credit card (Citibanks) I was speaking about above is in collections/charged off. I made a payment in feb 2014 and then less then 2 weeks after I made that payment, they sent it to collections.
Is this something I should try to dispute with citibanks? Since I made a payment and they still sent it to collection/charge off?
Many people are able to get new financing and approval for apartments (even mortgages) with a collection account on their credit reports. More often than not you want the collection account to be resolved.
It sounds like your Citibank account still has a balance owed. Is that correct, and if so, how much is it?
What you outlined is not all that uncommon when banks charge off accounts. How long did your account go late before it was sent to collections? When you made a payment, was it all of the arrears in order to bring your account current?
Hello Michael,
I had an old apartment complex 2010 that me and my roommate moved out of and thought we did everything buy the book. Well I found out yesterday when try to apply for a new apartment 2015 and they told me I owed the old complex so I called and they sent me the balance $1500.00 said it was in collections. When I went to view my free credit report it was only on 1 beureu maybe 2 anyway it showed it was a negative item that was in collections that was scheduled to drop of in 2017. What would be my best course of action as I have rebuilt my credit thus far score is 650 range. and I know I’ve heard ppl say if I pay it it will hurt me vs help me but I really want to get another apartment for me and my family.
I moved your comment to this page that is much more specific to renting an apartment with collection issues on your credit reports. Read from the top and then post your remaining questions and concerns in this comment string.
What would be my best course of action as I called the collection agency bc the manager said they switched collections Tiburon was the old collector I believe and I called them and they offered a settlement but its still for $1200 and I told them I didn’t even think I can pay that. What is the SOL and should I pay the collection or not as I am rebuilding my credit.
There is a 7 year SOL for this to appear on your credit reports. The SOL to legitimately sue you is state specific for a written contract. Where do you live?
Settling the old debt will generally improve how you are viewed for financing and increase your ability to be approved for another apartment. I can see waiting this out for unpaid debts to drop from your credit report. Only you can decide if 2 years is too long to wait to accomplish certain goals.
I live in Dallas, TX. 2 questions. If say I do choose to settle this debt and pay the settlement fee will it be completly removed my credit report. That would be the only way I would do it as when I have went to other apartments they never mention this being a problem so that brings me to my next question do certain place only pull a certain credit bureau report? or do they look at all 3 every time? I definetly could wait the 2 years I just want to know everyhting to make the best decision. Thanks in advance.
The Texas SOL on written contracts, such as apartment leases, is 4 years. It appears it has been more than 4 years since you stopped paying the old apartment rent.
It is unlikely to get them to agree to remove the negative reporting in return for payment (even it you paid in full).
You can pull all three credit reports to see if there is one not showing the old rental collection. But when it comes to which report a landlord or property management company uses, you will have to ask in advance. These days there are specialty reports and credit scores that combine credit attributes. It is much more likely that an experienced landlord will be aware of the rental collection. Your best odds would be looking for owner leasing or small operations that I point out in the original article above.
Question. I have an old apartment debt from 2009 that I owe. I recently applied for an apartment and was denied because of this. The new apartment said I would have to pay that first and provide proof it’s been paid. This is due to drop from my credit report in May of 2016. So once it fall off will I be able to apply for an apartment without that affecting me? If I pay it and show the new apartment the receipt, is that something that can be used as proof it’s been paid?
Once the old apartment collection falls off your credit report from age you typically will not hear anyone raise that as an objection for renting to you again.
If you pay the debt be sure to get everything documented and proof of payment. I would want a letter styled receipt on the property management or debt collectors letterhead (the collector that may be appearing on my credit reports regarding the old apartment debt).
Hello. I have an apartment debt that is with a collection agency. The debt goes back to 2009 and is for 4,000 total. I would like to know if this is something I would be able to settle, and if so, what type of settlement would I be looking at? What is the best way to approach this settlement if at all possible? Is this a debt that can be settled for less than 50%? Thank you.
Dennis
Is the old apartment debt a judgment? What state are you in?
Is there a specific credit or finance goal you have in the next year?
Thanks for you reply. The debt is currently with a debt collector. FCO in Maryland. I reside in New Jersey. My wife and I are looking to purchase a house, but this mark is holding us back.
I would generally target a 50 percent or lower settlement on debts this old, especially when the SOL to sue in order to collect is passed (6 years in New Jersey).
I would not let on anything about your goals, or even too much about current financials, when calling to negotiate. When you do reach an agreement to resolve the debt, be sure to get it in writing.
You do not have to negotiate a settlement with the collector in one phone call.
Review the page about settling with collectors and debt collection agencies. The original apartment complex or property management company may not even be involved at this late stage of collection. If the owner of your debt is now a debt buyer it does not change your strategy much.
Hi, Michael,
I’ve read some of the advice that you have given to others on this thread. Hopefully you can help me. I live in Chicago and I am currently having a hard time finding an apartment because of my credit. I signed up with sky blue credit reporting to help dispute some errors on my credit. I was told by my sister that that should help improve my score which is currently in the mid 500 range. I have some utility bills that I owe, cell phone bills, a loan owed to my former college, school loans, and 2 judgments from former landlords. I believe that the judgements are what is hurting my chances of getting approved for an apartment. I can’t afford to pay off the judgements all at once. Do you have any advice for how I should go about taking care of the judgements? I seems impossible for me to find a place with those on my record. I haven’t been able to find any credible programs in Chicago that can help me.
I moved your post over to this page as it has more to do with creative ways to seek an apartment with damaged credit. Read from the top.
It is likely the prior history with past landlords that is holding you back the most. And how you get from here to there (approved by the typical management company), is probably going to mean having the money to resolve the judgments, and time, or both. This means you are looking at the need to be flexible with your expectations with what you will qualify for.
How much can you pull together to resolve the judgments if they were willing to accept less to resolve the debts? How old are the judgments?
lo,
Thank you so much for responding..
Yes this is a third party I called them a couple months ago to try and settle and they said no they wanted the total due and if I paid it in full it would remain on my credit report for 7 yrs. Its recovery rent of better NOI,LLC and a interest of 5.% per annum they also kept my deposit. I am building my credit with a auto loan.
Thank you
Debra
If the original property owner or management company still owns the legal rights to the debt (old unpaid bills get bundled up and sold to debt buyers), see if you can contact them and negotiate something with them directly. If they refer you back to Better NOI because they are under contract, ask if or when that contract is set to expire. If they are willing to work with you on it, and are able to in the near future, it could be worth the effort. If you succeed in this, I would circle back and dispute BetterNOI being on your credit reports.
If you find out the unpaid bill was sold off to a debt buyer, it would help to know who.
How much time do you have to work with to find and get approved for a place?
Trying the credit repair company route could take at least 30 to 60 days.
Using the 50% you were willing to settle with Better NOI, but applying that money to the approach I mentioned in #4 above instead, could work.
BetterNOI works in major cities. Are smaller properties even an option for where you work and would choose to live?