Helping a tenant improve his credit score
May 30, 2006 11:06 AM   Subscribe

Helping a tenant improve his credit score?


I’d like to see if there is anything I can do as a landlord to report on time payment of rent.
There are some alternative methods like the Fair Isaac FICO Expansion score which use “alternative” data sources. Is rent payment one of these sources? Is there a way I submit his good payment history?
posted by hokie409 to Work & Money (1 answer total)
 
I am doubtful that there is a way to help your tenant improve his/her credit score because
- you are not a bank
- this is not a loan
- you may not be independent

Nevertheless you could keep a very organized paper trail that shows your tenant's obligation to you (the lease) and canceled checks showing a continuous pattern of on-time payment. You could write a "letter of recommendation" type document. This paper-trail and letter could be used by your tenant to support other, more official, credit history documentation. This would be most useful, I think, with a "portfolio lender" either for a mortgage or, possibly, an unsecured term loan.

You didn't ask but I don't think this advice works in reverse if you wanted to hurt the credit rating of a deadbeat tenant.
posted by kaytrem at 5:50 PM on May 30, 2006


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