How does one rent an apartment with poor credit?

Question

The person in question is self-employed (business owner), has enough money to pay 6 months rent up front, but he has really bad credit. It seems like in this area noone cares how much money he has in the bank, but they all run credit checks (Nothern CA). It takes a long time to re-establish good credit, but he needs a place to live now, not 6 months from now. What can he do?

Answer 1

Keep looking. You are bound to find someone who will take this person in. Usually private owners versus apartments and commercial renting. Look aggressively in the newspaper everyday. There are also places like Home Hunters that find places for you for a small fee. In this world today, if you are not perfect, life can be so hard if you can't live up to all these new rules and restrictions. 10 years ago, and certainly before 9/11, it wasn't like this.

Answer 2

renting from a private party, as said above, is probably the best move. Often people renting out rooms or something like that in houses do not run credit checks. You can find this kind of setup often by just driving around the neighborhood and looking for "for rent" signs, or by scanning the local newspaper. Then he can stay in that apartment or room for a while while building his credit. I've heard that keeping a credit card balance, even a low one, but paying it off on time every month, is a good way to earn credit.

Answer 3

I found a solution that worked for me. It might work for you too.

I had some pretty serious credit problems…some were not my fault and, I guess, a few were. I listened to the so-called “experts” who said they could fix my credit report and I spent money I didn’t have. I didn’t have any luck trying to get my credit report fixed.

I remember paying for the services that these Credit Repair Companies had to offer. The companies told me that they could have negative items removed from my credit reports without any problem, Yeah, right. This did not happen at all. Most of the companies wanted to charge me a set up fee anywhere from $39 to $299 for their services. Not only did they charge this set up fee, most of them also wanted to charge me from $29 to $49 monthly while they “attempted” to repair my credit report. These companies offered no guarantee that their services would actually work and, believe me, they didn’t.

I was about ready to give up when I found a lady who had been through the same thing and who had found a solution. She figured out how get all the negative items removed from her credit report within 3 months without paying anyone a penny. She developed a fast, easy, step-by-step process that she guarantees will work for everyone. She sells the complete plan with all the help and instructions for $47.00.

I know what you are thinking…”another $47 down the drain,” and that’s kind of what I was thinking too. But, I figured that since she offers a 100% money back guarantee I had nothing to lose.

Well, I tried it and it was amazing. I got all of the negative items removed from my credit report and my credit score went from 553 to 715 in only 3 months. All I can say is that it worked great for me. I suggest you check it out. You can always get your money back if it doesn’t work for you. If it works even half as well for you as it did for me you will never even think about asking for a refund.

The information is on this site: http://clean-credit-secrets.com/

Answer 4

Usually, most land lords will take a certain amount upfront or a co-signer.
Has your friend offered to pay a large deposit to cover any potential loss?

Answer 5

Read some tips and articles on this site on how to rebuild credit

Answer 6

Seek out individual owners, rather than large complexes with managers and be honest.

Answer 7

Perhaps he can rent from a private party, and not a property management company.

Answer 8

Co-signer or live in a van down by the river.

Answer 9

He'll have to find a private landlord.

Answer 10

offer larger deposit.