HP for Tenant Screening (Apartment Rent)

[MrPepperoni]

Hi guys,

As some of you already know I am a new immigrant and working hard to build that history from scratch because I didn't start at 18 y.o...and average age is a hard thing to get.
But anyway, I am moving from Los Angeles to Houston next month and I applied for an apartment complex for rent today.
They placed a HP on my Experian without letting me know upfront that it is going to be HP. Should I dispute considering I was not notified about HP ? Or should I ask them RentGrow to remove it, not sure if it works like this?
So, will such HP hurt my credit? I mean it is not a credit application...will it still affect me for the next 24 months?
I was gardening for the last 5 months and was planning to get a car loan or 2 new CCs after gardening for 6 months. But what now, now I have to garden 6 months again?

Please help!
Thank you!

[donkort]

One hard pull alone will affect your credit score minimally---if at all.  That's been my experience. 

Good luck on getting the apartment.

[Anonymous]

1 HP from a rental company is not credit seeking behavior and shouldn't affect your EX score by too much. In my experience, the apt management company won't remove the HP. But you can ask...esp if you end up not getting the apt. Also If you want, maybe you can try for a card that only pulls from the other credit bureaus. And when you apply for the 2 cards you want, try to do it on the same day..maybe even within mins of each other so to possibly help minimize the chance of being denied by an inquiry sensitive bank. Good luck! 

[Trudy]

A HP for a rental application is not unheard of.  I would say it's likely.  It may be in something you signed, like the application without realizing it.

Depends on your specific profile what affect if any the HP will have.  HP usually don't cause large hits but depending on where your scores are could impact you enough. 

Since there is no new acct associated with the HP no more damage if any should be done and should not adversely impact an application.  Specifically an auto loan as they will review other information to determine your approval.  It does not show credit seeking behaviour, particularly if manually reviewed.  And the effect of it on your score is 12 months, although it can be seen on your report for 24 months.

[Anonymous]

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@MrPepperoni wrote:

Hi guys,

As some of you already know I am a new immigrant and working hard to build that history from scratch because I didn't start at 18 y.o...and average age is a hard thing to get.
But anyway, I am moving from Los Angeles to Houston next month and I applied for an apartment complex for rent today.
They placed a HP on my Experian without letting me know upfront that it is going to be HP. Should I dispute considering I was not notified about HP ? Or should I ask them RentGrow to remove it, not sure if it works like this?
So, will such HP hurt my credit? I mean it is not a credit application...will it still affect me for the next 24 months?
I was gardening for the last 5 months and was planning to get a car loan or 2 new CCs after gardening for 6 months. But what now, now I have to garden 6 months again?

Please help!
Thank you!

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Most properties will check your credit when you fill out a rental applicarion. Only small landlords renting their personal property might not, and that is becoming rare too. They want to know if you will pay your rent on time. The best way to do that is to see how you pay your other bills. Btw. They did let you know. It is on the application you filed out. By law it had to say you authorize them to check your credit. Since you are in another state I am assuming you filed it out online. When it says check your credit you should always assume it is a hard pull and be happy if it is not.

[staticvoidmain]

If you want to rent on that specific apartment property, then I'd just let it go. This is fairly standard and is not the exception. I would just use this experience for future decisions. This will affect your credit, but I reckon you'd get back in no time. I personally would not consider it as something that should affect gardening, since an account is not opened.

[donkort]

It just might not affect your FICO score at all.  You're in the 700s.  You will stay there.  I've had 5 inquiries with a relatively short period of time, and it affected my score minimally--and I was in the upper 600s then.

[Anonymous]

HP's age off, so burniging one for a home is minor. HP's with credit apps are different because you lose points for both the HP and new account, you don't have this hit so it won't factor as much when you go to buy a car.

People garden to let accounts age and HP fall off. It seems you only have 2 open accounts, but how many HP's do you have?

IMO they only matter if somone has an excess of them, like more than 6-8 on a young thin file. If you're thinking of getting a car, I'd do that before any CC apps to get the best rate. 

As others have already covered, the HP was addressed in the application you signed. In the future I would suggest that you ask point blank whether a HP will result whenever you sign anything just to be safe. Credit is pulled for almost everything anymore.

[Anonymous]

Don't worry, OP! One hard pull won't pose risky behavior. It is normal to pull your credit for renting. Nothing to dispute because you did apply, thus giving them permission to pull your credit. 

[Anonymous]

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@MrPepperoni wrote:

1) They placed a HP on my Experian without letting me know upfront that it is going to be HP 
2) So, will such HP hurt my credit?

3) I mean it is not a credit application
4) But what now, now I have to garden 6 months again?

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1 -- you would have signed an authorization release -- ask for a copy if it helps put your mind at ease;

2 -- no;

3 -- it is a credit application, unless you plan to pay the full term of the lease upfront (ie, 12 months x __ per month);

4 -- no; carry on as planned.

Welcome to Texas!