credit check question

[wolv67]

I have lived in my two bedroom apartment for 3 years with a roommate. Our lease is now up and we are month to month however when we first signed the lease I couldn't be there because of work but our manager said it was fine because my roommate passed the credit check. Just a couple days ago they are now saying I need to fill out an application for a credit check myself and pay the fee. It has been a hard last year, my credit is not as good as 3 years ago and I would like to avoid to credit check fee if possible. Can they ask me to do this after all these years and am I at risk of not being aloud to live here anymore should my credit not live up to standard? Thank you for anyone who can help.

 

[Gail_in_Georgia]

Running a credit check is just one area that a landlord/management looks at when approving a tenant. It's a bit strange that they ask for this after you've lived in the place all this time. Have you ever been late paying the rent? Have you asked them why, after all this time, they now need to do this?

Because you are now on a month to month tenancy (i.e., your lease actually begins the first day of each month and ends the last day), you might be at greater risk of losing the apartment if you don't comply with their request than if you do and your credit isn't the best. Month to month tenancies can be generally be terminated without stating the reason why.

Gail

 

[wolv67]

They told me its a new rule and they want to make sure no occupants are illegal immigrants. I can obviously prove I am legal but the credit check is what threw me off being that we have never been late on a payment and been here for so long. They have recently remodeled our apartment and since our rent is relatively cheap being that we have been here for so long we thought maybe its a ploy to get us out and up the rent but if our lease can most likely be terminated with out stating a reason why perhaps we're just being suspicious. Thank you so much for your response.

 

[Gail_in_Georgia]

On some of the landlord forums I'm on there's been an increasing amount of discussion regarding "punishing" landlords if they rent to illegal immigrants. These concerns tend to involve landords with rentals in places like Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Texas and California.

Gail