When you’re in the process of finding a place to rent, you’ll probably hear a landlord or property manager talk about running your rental history report as part of their tenant screening process. But what is a rental history report? Essentially, it lays out your behaviors when renting in the past, like your payment history, evictions, lease violations, and the like. But that’s not all.
To give you a better idea of what it is and what to expect, here’s an introduction to rental history reports and their role in rental property screening procedures.
Key Takeaways
- The rental history report reflects your track record as a tenant, including past addresses, payment history, evictions, lease violations, and the like.
- You can request a copy of your rental history report from a screening company and dispute any inaccuracies
- Texas landlords are legally allowed to reject a tenant’s application for a negative rental history record.
What Is a Rental History Report (and What Information Is in a Rental History Report?)
As a company that provides San Antonio property management solutions to landlords, we are extremely familiar with tenants’ rental history reports. Basically, the rental history report is a document that consolidates your past rental history and information. This typically includes previous addresses, payment records, late payments, past evictions, property damage, lease violations or complaints, outstanding balances, and more.
The primary purpose of rental history reports is to provide landlords or property managers with a better understanding of your tendencies as a tenant. For example, if your rental history shows that you have a clean record, then they’ll know that you’re a reliable and responsible applicant with great potential. On the other hand, if your rental history indicates that you have trouble paying rent on time, that might not bode as well, negatively impacting your chances of securing a lease agreement.
How to Check Your Own Rental History Report
If you’re applying for a property for rent and want to review what is included in your rental history report, you can. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), all you need to do is go to a tenant screening company and request a copy of your rental history report. More than just checking what’s on it, you can verify key details and even move to correct many mistakes or errors on the report. In case of disputes, Texas regulations require screening and reporting agencies to investigate and correct the inaccuracy within 30 days.
Before your landlord gets hold of your rental history report, it’s important that you review it yourself and spot inconsistencies, incomplete details, and any other errors. Something such as a mistakenly listed late payment or a false record of rent non-payment can muddy your reputation, even if they’re not true!
How Long Does Rental History Stay on Your Report?
Let’s say that you were evicted from your apartment ten years ago. Now you’re wondering, will that still be in your rental history record after all these years? The answer to this question is not that simple since duration depends on the type of information on the report. For example, following the FCRA, eviction records stay on a tenant’s rental history report for up to seven years. The same seven-year limit also applies to collection accounts for outstanding balances and most other adverse information (except criminal convictions).
However, for non-monetary items like lease violations, noise complaints, property damage, and the like that are not part of a public record or collection account, the duration is not strictly defined by the FCRA’s seven-year limit. Let’s say that you have a noise complaint because you’ve been caught playing your music a little too loud several times. Given that it was only a minor issue, the report can stay for as short as a year or two. However, if the complaint is because you threw a full-blown party, completely disregarding your neighbors, then the record stays for several more years.
Can You Be Denied Housing Because of Rental History?
Following federal fair housing laws and Texas regulations, landlords can deny applicants because of a bad rental history. According to the state’s tenant eligibility requirements, rental applications can be denied due to criminal history, current income, credit history, inaccurate information, and previous rental history.
Now, if a landlord or property manager decides you don’t have the characteristics of the tenant they are looking for, they are required to give you an “adverse action notice”. This document must indicate the reason behind the application denial, the contact information of the screening company, a clause saying that they can get a free copy of the report, and that they have the right to dispute inaccurate information.
Find Your Next Home with Bay Property Management
Essentially, what a rental history report does is outline a tenant’s past addresses, payment records, evictions, and lease violations, allowing landlords to assess their reliability. Tenants can request a copy of this report under the FCRA to check for and dispute any inaccuracies they may find. If they have a negative rental history, their application may be denied.
In the meantime, if you want prompt, professional services for your maintenance requests, clear communication on your lease terms and property updates, and a responsive team to address your questions quickly, we can help. Our team works 24/7 to give you the experience you deserve. Interested? Look at our listings today!