Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I had my identity stolen when I was a kid and have had a credit freeze ever since the day I turned 18. I'm leaving college this December and expect to move to a low-income area that suits my personality. Baton Rouge, LA, and Louisville, KY are at the top of my list atm; I'm headed to check out both of them next week as well as many other places over the next 2 weeks (Chattanooga, Atlanta, Mobile, Dallas, OK City, and others).
Anyway, so not only has there been a credit freeze on my account, but I have absolutely NO credit. No more than 6 months after graduation (I'm taking my last semester online, so this will be around November, 2012), I'll begin making payments on my federal student loans, which I know will affect my credit, along with utility payments. But I'll be in an apartment long before then, I think. If I discover right away that everyone wants proof of employment, I'll probably just rent a room, though it's not my choice (only because I've seen soooo many people get financially stuck taking this route), until I have had a job for a few months. Even if I do that, I still won't have much in the way of credit if, again, any whatsoever.
I'm looking in the $350-500 range; nothing fancy. When I leave in December I'll have $5k in my pocket after my move to get an apartment and survive until I get a job; I know that it will be entirely unrealistic to have work already set up when I'm looking for minimum wage employment.
I know that there are plenty of companies, complexes, and individual renters that don't check credit, as well as many who do. If my heart is set on a low-end place that checks credit, do you think it's something whomever is interviewing me or looking at my app could get past if I, for example, paid 2 months (or if they're asking for 2, 3 months) up front, gave them direct access to my checking account, etc? Or even with my low-end budget, should I immediately cross off apartments that openly advertise they check credit?
When I started looking for my first apartments, I had little to no credit history. Depending on their rules and perhaps on state laws, there are different routes that were offerred for me:
1- have a co-signer on the lease. My parents were able to cosign for one lease, but in my current apartment, a cosigner must live in the same state (didn't need it but it would have been impossible for me since I moved here knowing no one....kind of an oversight on their part).
2- They hold an additional month's rent with the deposit. I'm not sure if you can eventually use this as say, your last month's rent, or if they just return the whole thing to you once you move out.
3- there was third option...I can't for the life of me remember what it was...sorry.
My current complex does check credit scores and employment, but go by a 'points system'. You get points for having a job, good credit, good renting history, background check, and like 10 other things...if you get at least 9 points, you're in the clear and they rent to you with no stipulations. If you are less than that, they can use their discretion with the cosigner, larger deposit, ect if they will rent to you.
Moral of the story - it can't hurt to look at places that check credit...the worst they can do is tell you no. I think I would be more concerned about not having employment set up while looking...
It's really going to come down to the city you choose. The rules of renting vary from city to city, however, there are many cities that have apmt complexes that don't do credit checks.
I have bad credit, but flawless rental history. I've never had issues getting an apartment in Dallas. However, when I moved to Chicago, they all turned me down. They wouldn't touch me with extra deposit, cosignor, etc nada due to me having bad credit. I learned a few weeks into my apartment hunt that I was going to have to find an apartment that didn't do a credit check. This was foreign to me. In Dallas, all the apartments do credit checks becasue they are all apart of an association (TAA). But in Chicago, I was able to find complexes that didn't do credit checks and that solved that problem. I think Dallas is one of the few cities where all complexes operate under an association like that. Most cities have places that operate on their own accord, so you should be able to find one that doesn't do a credit check. You'll just have to put up a larger deposit and probably 1st and last months rent.
With that said, I'd cross Dallas off your list based on your $300-$500 rent range, unless you are talking about renting with a roommate. You do not want to live in any apartment in Dallas that you can get by yourself for less than $500, trust me - 15 years experience living in Dallas.
Offer a financial statement, prepared by your bank(s) with a list of your assets. That may suffice. There are certain populations who don't have credit because they choose not to use credit cards and pay cash for everything.
Some places request a credit report solely for the purpose of looking at your most recent residences! They just want to make sure you have no lived in 12 places in the last 18 months even though you may tell them you have lived in only 1. The only advice I can give is be upfront with the basic information! Do not give any information that could compromise your situation any more, for example...
Quote:
gave them direct access to my checking account
Lots of places will do a month to month lease for individuals that they feel might not be a good fit.
See if they will do a 6 month lease and offer to pay all 6 months up front.
Most places will not accept advance rent because it creates some legal issues. However, with no credit, you should be able to get something by paying a high security deposit. If you don't have the cash, look for a co-signer.
With that said, I'd cross Dallas off your list based on your $300-$500 rent range, unless you are talking about renting with a roommate. You do not want to live in any apartment in Dallas that you can get by yourself for less than $500, trust me - 15 years experience living in Dallas.
As far as I can tell and from what my childhood taught me, I don't want to live ANYWHERE with a population >200k for $300-500/month for a studio or 1 bedroom. But I digress, lol.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.