What Credit Score Do You Need to Rent an Apartment?

There is no official minimum credit score you need to rent an apartment, though a credit score of at least 600 is generally considered acceptable by landlords. The higher your credit score is, the more likely it is that you will be approved to rent an apartment.

A high credit score signals to landlords that you are financially responsible and capable of paying your bills on time. This will make them more likely to rent to you. If you are uncertain about what your credit score is, you can check your credit score for free here on WalletHub.

Check Your Credit Score for Free

Minimum Credit Score to Rent an Apartment

The minimum credit score you need to rent an apartment varies from landlord to landlord, though most prefer a credit score of 600 or higher. Most landlords consider a person with a credit score of 600 or above to pose less risk of being late on rent payments than someone with a lower credit score. You can estimate your likelihood of being approved for an apartment based on your credit score below.

• 700 or higher: High approval odds
• 600 to 699: Likely approval, depending on the type of property
• Below 600: Could be approved with additional requirements

A credit score below 600 won’t necessarily get you denied for an apartment. However, if a landlord approves you for an apartment, they may require something like a higher security deposit, a co-signer, or a higher rent amount to lower the risk you may pose.

What Credit Score Do Landlords Use?

Landlords can use a variety of different credit scores, based on your credit report from any of the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion), to determine whether they should rent you an apartment. You may not know which credit score they’ll use beforehand, so it’s a good idea to check all three credit reports to see if there are any negative marks that can negatively affect your scores.

Checking your credit report gives you the opportunity to fix any possible errors before a potential landlord sees them. If a negative item is accurate, you can proactively come up with a strategy to convince potential landlords you won’t repeat the same mistake, such as proving your income is more stable now.

WalletHub gives you free access to your TransUnion credit report and your VantageScore 3.0 credit score based on that TransUnion report. You can also check your credit reports from all three bureaus for free every week on AnnualCreditReport.com.

Learn more about how to get your credit report and credit score for free.

Why Do Landlords Do Credit Checks?

Landlords do credit checks to ensure that the person they choose to rent to has the financial resources to pay rent and has a history of paying their financial obligations on time. Choosing renters who, through their credit histories, show that they can pay rent on time can help save landlords from financial losses due to unpaid rent.

What Landlords Look for in Credit Checks

Late or missed payments: Having late or missed payments listed on your credit report can signal to landlords that you may be late on your rent in the future. This makes them less likely to rent to you.

High debt-to-income ratio: If you have a lot of debt, landlords may question your ability to afford their rent. A good debt-to-income ratio is anything below 36%. Having a ratio above that amount increases the risk for landlords since having a lot of debt may reduce the amount of income that you can afford to spend on rent.

Evictions: Evictions probably won't be listed on your credit report, but the financial consequences of one most likely will be. If you were evicted from a previous rental due to unpaid rent, your former landlord may have sent your unpaid balance to collections.

Collection accounts are listed on your credit report, and if a potential landlord sees an unpaid collection account tied to a property management company, they may investigate to see whether there was an eviction. Having an eviction in your past makes it harder to get approved.

Bankruptcies: A bankruptcy filing on your credit report can signal to landlords that you had a rough financial road before. Even though a past bankruptcy may not completely prevent you from getting an apartment, landlords will most likely want to see that your financial situation has improved since the bankruptcy filing before approving you for an apartment.

Collection accounts and loan defaults: Defaulting on a loan or having a collection account from any unpaid debt can signal to landlords that you are not responsible enough to pay your financial obligations, including rent, on time.

It’s important to note that landlords may also obtain some of this information from a rental history report. Negative information on your report can be a red flag for landlords and impact your chances of being approved for an apartment. However, you may still be able to rent an apartment despite having negative information on your file if you explain your situation to the potential landlord and show how you have improved from your past mistakes.

You should also note that negative information does not stay on your file forever. Things like late payments and collection accounts should fall off your credit report and rental history report after seven years. You can learn more from WalletHub’s guide on how long info stays on your credit report.

Can You Get an Apartment With Bad Credit?

You may be able to rent an apartment with bad credit, though it may be difficult. That’s because you will have to prove to the landlord that choosing to rent an apartment to you will not pose a significant risk. Things you can do to reduce that risk include:

• Getting a roommate who has a higher credit score than you.
• Putting down a higher security deposit than previously requested.
• Paying for a few months of rent in advance.
• Getting a co-signer who has a higher credit score than you.
• Providing references from credible sources like past landlords, employers, or business associates.
• Proving you have stable income by providing your recent pay stubs.

You may also have an easier time getting approved for an apartment when you apply for one through an individual landlord, as they tend to be more flexible than property management companies. If you would rather not deal with extra requirements to rent an apartment, it’s a good idea to build your credit before you start applying.

Can You Get an Apartment With No Credit?

You can get an apartment with no credit, though you will have to prove to the landlord that you are financially responsible and capable of affording the rent payments. You can do this by proving your income is at least three times the amount of the rent (a threshold many landlords look for), placing a high security deposit, or prepaying a couple of months of rent in advance. You could also show references from previous landlords and get a co-signer who has a good credit score and meets the landlord’s income requirements.

It’s important to note that renters with no credit are not viewed exactly the same as renters with bad credit. Renters with bad credit may have a history of late payments or outstanding debts that are red flags to landlords and signal that they may have trouble paying rent on time. Renters with no credit have no history that landlords can use to determine what type of renter they will be. This is seen as slightly less risky than renters with a history of financial mistakes.

If you have no credit and want to increase your chances of being approved for an apartment without additional requirements to meet, continue reading to see how you can build your credit.

How to Build Credit to Rent an Apartment

Make On-Time Payments 

Payment history has the greatest influence on your credit score and can show landlords whether you are likely to pay your rent on time. When you pay your bills 30 or more days late, that can show up on your credit report and have a negative impact on your credit score. But always making on-time payments can help you build good credit. Some tips to never miss a due date include setting up autopay and creating payment reminders. 

Pay Down Debt

Carrying a lot of debt negatively impacts your credit and suggests to landlords that you may not have enough funds to pay rent. Your credit utilization ratio, which is the percentage of your credit limit that you are using on each credit card and overall, is a good indicator of whether you are carrying too much debt. A credit utilization ratio above 30% can have a significant impact on your credit score.

When you pay down your credit card balances, you will lower your credit utilization ratio, which can help increase your credit score. Ideally, you should aim for a ratio that is under 10%.

Look for Errors on Your Credit Report

Having errors on your credit report can drag down your credit score and make it difficult to get approved for an apartment. That’s why it’s important to review your credit report regularly for errors. If you do spot an error, you can dispute it with the credit bureaus and have them removed from your credit report. Once you have the errors removed, you may find that your credit score increases shortly afterward.

Use WalletHub

WalletHub offers various tools you can use to build credit and improve your credit score. For starters, WalletHub provides a personalized credit analysis of the components affecting your score and steps on how you can improve.

WalletHub also offers a credit builder feature that lets you report your bills, such as your phone bill, to the credit bureaus so you can build credit with payments that are not normally reported. Getting your on-time payments reported to the credit bureaus adds positive information to your credit report, which can help build your credit history and show landlords you are responsible enough to pay rent on time.

Learn more about how to build credit.