Renting after b/k and foreclosure

[pattygg5]

One thing that really worries me is now that we are going to be surrendering house in the b/k is finding a place to live where they won't discriminate for b/k. We've never had a problem renting before we bought our home, however I'm wondering how much that will all change. Has anyone had any problems renting and having credit run, etc... Does it take awhile before the b/k shows up on credit report?? Any infor GREATLY appreciated!!

Thanks,
patty gg

[spearmint]

I am about to file Chapter 13. My attorney told me it would be on my credit report within 30 days.

[lrprn]

One thing that really worries me is now that we are going to be surrendering house in the b/k is finding a place to live where they won't discriminate for b/k.

Best thing you can do is be honest since most landlords will check your credit score. After bk hits the 3 credit agencies it will low. Most of our members have discovered that building owners were far more sympathetic than they expected.

If you can offer some extra on top of the deposit, often landlords will see that favorably as a geture of good faith.

[DUMBAGAIN]

It probably depends on the landlord. Some want you discharged, however with 13 that's not going to work. Others don't care as long as you don't owe them any money. Is it possible to sign a lease before it hits your CR?

[BK2008]

I just rented in February after a BK & foreclosure, I had no problem.
I was upfront with the management co from the start, told them what happened, why, credit scores bad, etc etc. Wrote a letter to the property owner for effect.
They ran my reports, saw my score, and still rented to me (doubled my deposit to $800). I pay my rent prior to the due date so later I can get a good reference.

And before I settled on which property I wanted, I talked to the management at different places to feel them out on the BK issue. I didn't want inquiries until I was really ready to lock down a place.

[frugality76]

renting after BK

Actually I think that this is the best time to rent. There are soooooo many people out there looking for renters to help them make their own house payments that many do not do credit checks.

I found a couple on craigslist that fit my needs. They did not ask me for a deposit, nor minded my 3 pets (1 cat, 2 dogs) nor charged me extra per month for the pets. I feel extremely lucky! (I would live in a car with my animals versus giving them up, so that was definitely one of my criterias)

So if I found a place to live like that, I feel confident that you can find a great place as well. A lot of people whom want to share their homes do not pull credit reports. And then, you can use them as a credit reference if you decide to move at a later point.

There are also a lot of people who are stuck in this housing mess that have multiple homes that they need to fill, so you may be able to rent an entire house!!!!

I think that after the discharge, as long as you keep up with all your payments, you can plead your case to most people.

[JustDo]

I found there were still some property management companies who were going by the atequated "2 years after discharge" requirement.

I have 20 years at government job that is rock solid and a 20 year impeccable credit history before BK and made 4 times the rent and they still wouldn't consider us for this particular place.

But the good news is these type of property managers are very much the minority nowdays. Most want a slighty higher deposit but I have found that most are willing to listen to your story and make the final decision on other criteria such and income and stability of job,

[dingdong]

Make sure you check the county records before you rent a home and make sure it isn't in foreclosure.

Happened to me twice. First house I looked at and was thinking of renting after I had to move out of a rental that was foreclosed on a few weeks after I rented it, was in foreclosure as well.

There are some freakin nasty people out there only looking to make off with your deposit.

[StartingOver08]

It is easier to rent after a BK then just before you file.

It is easier to rent from private owners too rather than large apartment type complexes. Most Realtors handle rentals too - in addition to CL. Be careful, as DD points out, to check out the status of the property before you rent. Most professional Realtors check the status before they will show you the property.

[hnhlvr]

Make sure you check the county records before you rent a home and make sure it isn't in foreclosure.

Happened to me twice. First house I looked at and was thinking of renting after I had to move out of a rental that was foreclosed on a few weeks after I rented it, was in foreclosure as well.

There are some freakin nasty people out there only looking to make off with your deposit.

We checked too. There was one home that was very far along in the foreclosure process and still was listed in CL!

We told our landlords upfront and they didn't even run a credit check, knowing our situation. Just asked for first, last, & damage.

[NoMoreRed]

We were just discharged for a C7 and decided to walk from our house after almost 1 year of fighting with Countrywide for a loan mod. The mortgage was discharged in the BK so it made the decision quite easy.

We just finished moving into a much larger and much newer home in a master planned community which is less than half of what our mortgage was. When going to see the home we were up front with our BK and brought a completed lease application along with 2 months of our paystubs. We also brought a copy of our discharge papers. The property management company had no issue whatsoever with the BK and called us within 3 hrs. of submitting our application to let us know that the home was ours if we wanted it.

I wouldn't worry about it too much. Just be upfront and honest. They are most concerned with whether or not you have the income to support the amount of the rent.

[All Cash]

Back in the 1990's I was in the middle of my Chapter 7. Had a good job and no problems renting a very nice luxury apartment. They only wanted 3 months of rent up front. My fico back then was in the low 500's.

[justbroke]

Generally speaking, the credit bureaus will know of your BK filing within 48 hours of filing (true story)! So will most of your creditors. This is done through the Electronic Bankruptcy Noticing Center (a/k/a EBN).

As for renting... I did with bad credit and just explained everything up front. I want to echo and echo and echo and echo what dingdong wrote above. If renting from an individual, check the property records and see if it's in foreclosure. Furthermore, check PACER (yes... PACER) to see if the owner is in Bankruptcy. I almost rented a $1,000,000 home for $1,500 a month only to find out, before singing anything, that it was a foreclosure. The owner didn't come clean until I asked him why the home was listed for sale (in the MLS) for $1,000,000!!!

[moneytrouble]

No problem renting. You just have to make a bigger deposit. Nicer places require more.