Monday, December 20, 2010

Getting an Apartment for Rent when your Credit History is Less than Stellar

It used to be that if you had poor credit, you only had a rough time applying for and getting approved for a loan to buy a home with. You could always easily get by if you rented instead. These days, what with the economic situation squeezing so many people out of a job, it's getting so that you even need a reasonably good credit history to get approved for an apartment for rent. Is there something you can do to help your case if you find yourself in such a situation? Let's see shall we?

In the TV show Friends, one of the characters, Ross, really wants an apartment and a plum spot in Manhattan; he believes that if only he could find something to get the landlord think of him as more special than the other applicants for the apartment, he could possibly come out on top. Finding some way of recommending your case over that of the other applicants really works if you can find something to work for you. Money does solve a number of problems. If you are able to put down a larger deposit then you are even asked for and if you're able to pay for more months in advance, that could be a real positive. The very fact that you put in the work to make tempting offer holds you up as a serious candidate. Before you even hand in your application, you need to talk to the landlord or management committee to see what can be done. As a general rule, the higher up the scale you go with the luxury, the stricter the requirements. A letter of recommendation can be great too. If the complex with the apartment for rent seems to have requirements in a credit score that's too high, a recommendation could work very well. It doesn't matter that you have been late with your car payments or your credit card payments. If your word is as good as gold as far as your previous landlord is concerned, you should have no problem.

There is one simple rule to keep in mind if you are having a hard time applying for anything at all with bad credit - get a cosigner if you can. The moment you get a cosigner with a good credit to share responsibility for a credit card you are applying for or getting an apartment for rent, it's like a magic boost to your own credit score. As long as you are sure that you're not about to land that cosigner of yours in hot water, this could be a great way to go forward.

No comments:

Post a Comment