Apartment screening in Texas: credit, rental history, records and report errors

The short answer

Screening and income limits are two separate tests. An income restricted apartment checks that your household fits the program’s income limit, then runs its own screening on credit, rental history and records. Passing one doesn’t mean you pass the other.

Each property writes its own screening criteria. The real question is how this community’s written policy treats your specific issue. Get that answer before you pay an application fee.

Get the written criteria before you pay

Texas Property Code 92.3515 covers selection criteria. When a landlord gives you a rental application, it has to make a printed notice of its tenant selection criteria available. The grounds for denial it lists can include criminal history, previous rental history, current income and credit history. Failing to give accurate or complete information on the application can be a ground as well. You’re asked to sign that you got the notice.

If a landlord rejects you and never made that notice available, the law says the application fee and any application deposit have to be returned. Before you pay, get clear on the fee, any application deposit and when you’d get money back, since Texas treats fees and deposits differently. Don’t assume a denial always means a refund, or that every charge is nonrefundable.

We read each community’s written criteria for you. Is credit, an old balance, past rentals or a record worrying you? Tell us up front, and we’ll ask how each policy handles that issue before we send a community your way. A policy match isn’t approval. The property still makes the final call.

Credit and old balances

Policies treat an unpaid balance, a collection, a judgment and a thin credit file differently. Ask the leasing office these questions before you apply:

• Do you look at a credit score, the full report or only rental and utility debt?
• Does a paid or settled balance count the same as an open one?
• How far back do you look?
• Will a larger deposit or a guarantor change the answer?

Rental and eviction history

An eviction filing, an eviction judgment and a balance owed to a past landlord aren’t the same thing. A written policy may treat each one differently, so ask how the property counts a case that was dismissed, settled or paid.

Gather records that show what happened and how it was resolved. A court record showing the outcome, a payment receipt or a letter from the past landlord can help. Keep your explanation short: the dates and what has changed since. Ask which documents the manager will look at and whether there’s a way to ask for a review or appeal.

Criminal history

Criminal history is one of the grounds a Texas landlord can list in its written selection criteria. Policies differ a lot. Ask what kinds of records the property looks at and how far back it goes. Can you explain or show proof of what has changed? Ask that too. Agency programs such as public housing and vouchers follow the agency’s own written admission policy, so ask the agency for a copy.

The federal Fair Housing Act still applies to screening. A property can’t use its criteria to treat people differently based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status or disability. If you think that happened, you can report housing discrimination to HUD. There are time limits on filing, so act soon.

If a screening report gets you denied

CFPB explains your adverse action rights. Were you denied or offered worse terms (a bigger deposit or a co-signer, say) based on a report? Then you may be owed a notice naming the screening company. You can then ask that company for a free copy of the report within 60 days.

1. Read the report line by line. Look for records that aren’t yours, old cases shown as open and debts that were paid.
2. Dispute each error with the screening company and send proof of what the record should say. CFPB’s guide to reviewing your rental background check says the company usually has 30 days to look into a dispute, and sometimes 45.
3. Dispute it with the source too, such as a past landlord or a creditor.
4. Keep copies of everything you send and get back.
5. If the problem isn’t fixed, you can file a complaint with the CFPB.

Fixing an error can help, but it doesn’t guarantee a different answer. The report company investigates the record, and the landlord makes the decision, so track those two things separately.

What “second chance” really means

“Second chance” is a marketing label, not one housing program, and it doesn’t guarantee you’ll be accepted. A property that calls itself second chance still has written criteria, and those decide what it accepts.

• Ask for the written criteria, not a verbal promise.
• Don’t send private records to a listing you haven’t verified. The FTC explains how to spot rental listing scams.
• Don’t pay a service that promises to hide accurate information. No locator, us included, can erase a record or guarantee a property will approve an application.

Keep application fees under control

Don’t pay several fees on someone’s word that it “should be fine.” Get an itemized list of fees for each property. Total them with the application cost calculator. Until you get the official decision, treat anything you’re told out loud as unconfirmed. Apply first where the written policy fits your situation.

Keep a folder of records

• The ad and the written selection criteria.
• Receipts showing each charge and who you paid.
• The decision and any adverse action notice.
• A copy of the record you’re disputing and proof of what it should say.
• Copies of later messages, with dates.

If there’s a legal deadline or you think you faced discrimination, get qualified help right away. For income and document checks, read how to qualify for income restricted apartments. If you need help soon, use official assistance resources.