How to Report Bad Credit Evictions

Landlords may report delinquent and evicted tenants to the three major credit bureaus (TransUnion, Experian and Equifax) if they either purchase subscriptions with those bureaus or hire a third party business to do so for them. The process is relatively simple, but requires that you produce a copy of the lease along with payment records and copies of communications sent to the delinquent tenant. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires that all individuals and companies reporting credit information to the bureaus do so accurately.

Instructions

1

Open an account with one or more of the three major credit bureaus. You will need to pay a business subscription to do so. Once you have established this business relationship, you must provide relevant documentation to the bureaus to get the entry established. Make copies of the lease agreement, bank records indicating lack of payment, and any letters you have sent the delinquent tenant requesting back rent. If you have evicted the tenant, include the documents from the eviction court proceedings.

2

Wait to hear from the credit bureaus regarding your report. If you provided all the documentation the bureau requires, the tenants will have a significant mark against them on their credit report. In addition, if you sell the back rent debt to a collections agency, that company will almost certainly put the debt on the credit report of the evicted tenants as well. This will damage their ability to take on further loans or get apartment leases in the future.

3

Avoid having to evict tenants in the future by running credit screens on prospective tenants. Under the FCRA, landlords are allowed to request credit reports of prospective tenants if the tenants sign an agreement on their lease application to allow their report to be ordered. If prospective tenants have a previous eviction or multiple delinquent accounts on their report, there's a good chance they will fail to pay you in the future.