Category Archives: Forclosure

No doubt about it, a foreclosure is more depressing to one’s credit rating than seeing the bottom of an empty margarita glass on Cinco de Mayo. And landlords—the smart ones anyway—do tend to rely a lot on credit scores and background checks.

However, according to a survey by the National Association of Independent Landlords, over 80% of independent landlords would rent to someone who had lost a property to foreclosure. The one stipulation here being that the applicant should, otherwise, have good credit.

“Landlords typically won’t rent to applicants with poor credit – and a foreclosure will absolutely slam someone’s scores,” explained Tracey Benson, president of the National Association of Independent Landlords. “The exception is when they see people who have paid their bills their whole life, but lost their job, can’t meet their mortgage, and must hand their keys back to the bank.”

Benson further explained that rental applicants with foreclosures are often “good risks” because they were once homeowners.

“These people are used to taking pride in where they live. Often, they lost their jobs and homes through no fault of their own. Because of this abundance of defaults, there is a greater need for rental property, so landlords should carefully vet applicants.”

This article is from Short Sale Daily News.