3 Questions You Should Ask Your Real Estate Agent When You Need To Rent A Home And Have Bad Credit
If you have recently experienced financial or employment problems that have made it hard to pay bills on time, it can be challenging to find a new rental home. Although it is more common now for real estate agents to handle the purchase and sale of homes, you will also find that a few work with rental properties as well. Fortunately, you are likely to discover that finding the rental house you need is easier than you thought as long as you work with an experienced real estate agent and ask the questions listed below.
#1-What Can You Do To Make Yourself More Appealing To Homeowners And Prospective Landlords?
Although in many areas, credit checks are the norm for any rental application, there may be ways to work around that. For instance, a private owner may not require a credit check if he or she can verify your excellent rental and employment history. If a credit check is necessary, you may find that offering a substantial security deposit is enough to sway the landlord's opinion of you as a possible renter.
It may also be helpful to obtain a copy of your credit report and offer it to the landlord. He or she may appreciate your honesty and that you are saving them time and embarrassment from needing to initiate that conversation with you later on. This is also a good opportunity to explain some of the negative entries on the credit report. For instance, correlating the unpaid medical bills to a time when you lost your full-time employment and health insurance could be useful.
#2-Can You Offer To Sign A Shorter Lease Term To Prove Your Reliability?
If the above options have not worked and the person renting the home you want still seems a bit leery of renting to you, it may be helpful to offer to sign a shorter lease. Since many people see a credit report as an excellent indicator of your future financial behavior, you may need to invest some time proving otherwise.
By signing a shorter lease, you are establishing to the landlord that you will pay your rent on time and be a model tenant. When he or she is more confident of that information after a three to six-month lease has been successfully completed, you are more likely to be allowed to sign a longer lease.
#3-Should You Find A Co-signer To Get Your Lease?
If you know someone with good credit and the ability to be approved by your landlord, you may find that by using them as a co-signer, you can be approved more quickly. However, it is important to point out that the co-signer is taking responsibility for your obligation to pay rent on time and abide by all the rules listed on your lease. If for any reason you cannot pay or if you break the lease, your co-signer will need to comply with the lease terms.
As a part of that, your co-signer may need to have a higher income than a tenant would normally. That is due to the fact that co-signers need to establish their ability to pay both their own bills and yours if you were unable to do so.
In conclusion, renting a home when your credit score is not very good can be challenging. Fortunately, by working with an experienced real estate agent and asking the questions listed above, you may still be able to find the rental home you deserve.
