Reporting your rent to the credit bureaus: options, costs

Paying rent on time, month after month, is a good track record. But it almost never shows on your credit report, because nobody reports it. This guide is for renters who want those payments to count: it explains how rent gets reported, what to ask before you sign up for a program, what can go wrong and how mortgage lenders see it, based on what the CFPB (the federal consumer financial protection agency), FHFA and Fannie Mae publish.

Of adults who rent have rent on their report, according to estimates cited by the CFPB

1.7% to 2.3%²

Of rent that Fannie Mae's system can read in your bank data

12 months⁷

Of monthly rent for that system to take it into account

$300 or more⁷

That a furnisher generally has to respond to your dispute

30 days¹⁵

Does your rent already count toward your credit?

Probably not. The big three credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) do use rental payment and related collection information, although each handles it differently.¹ The problem is that few people report it: according to industry estimates cited by the CFPB, only 1.7% to 2.3% of adults who rent have rent in their credit file.²

The reason is simple: reporting is voluntary. Anyone who gives you credit can report your payments, and specialty agencies can also report rent payments, but creditors report voluntarily.³ If nobody reports your rent, it does not appear in your credit historycredit historyYour credit history is the record of your credit accounts and of whether you paid them on time, as shown in your credit report. Credit reporting companies collect and update this information and provide it to other businesses, which use it to make decisions about you. A good history helps you get housing, bank accounts, cards and loans, and lowers the interest you pay. If you have no history, or very little (a thin file), there may not be enough information to produce a score. Paying with a debit card, cash or a prepaid card usually does not build it.See the full definitionClose, even if you have paid on time for years.

Do not confuse your credit report with a tenant screening report. Many landlords use tenant screening reports to decide whether to rent to you and how much deposit to ask for; they can include credit reports, evictions and lawsuits, and a risk score. They are different from credit reports.¹¹ Tenant screeningtenant screening reportA tenant screening report is a report many landlords use to decide whether to rent to you and how much to charge for the security deposit. Specialty companies prepare it, and it can include your credit report, your rental history including eviction cases and lawsuits, employment verification, criminal history and a score or recommendation. It is not the same as a credit report. If a landlord denies you, or asks for a larger deposit or higher rent, because of the report, federal law requires the landlord to tell you, name the company and explain your right to a free copy and to dispute errors.See the full definitionClose has its own specialty agencies, which compile your payment history with past landlords.¹

How rent gets reported: three routes

Three ways to make your rent count

Ask first

Your landlord already reports

• In some cases your landlord may already be able to report your payments to the agencies.⁴
• The CFPB suggests asking whether they take part in a rental reporting program, often through a payment app.¹

Check who pays

A reporting service

• Some companies encourage renters to contribute their payments voluntarily to build credit.²
• The CFPB suggests considering the fees of these services.¹

Your bank data

No reporting, for your mortgage

• Fannie Mae's system can see your rent in 12 months of bank data.⁷
• Without a score, documented rent works as a credit reference.⁸

Start by asking your landlord: it is the route the CFPB suggests.¹

The first step is to ask. The CFPB says that if you want your rent payments reported, ask your landlord whether they participate in a rental reporting program, which often works through a rent payment app.¹ VantageScore, one of the companies that build scores, also says that in some cases your landlord may already be able to report your payments to the agencies.⁴

If your landlord does not offer it, there are services that report rent. The CFPB describes commercial efforts to increase rent reporting, such as companies that encourage renters to contribute this information voluntarily to build credit.² We do not recommend any particular service: compare what they offer using the questions further down.

What you can gain

Positive rental payments can help build your credit.¹ In its 2022 report on tenant screening, the CFPB mentions studies showing that including rental history boosts credit scores.²

Whether it counts also depends on the credit scorecredit scoreA credit score is a number that predicts how likely you are to pay back a loan on time. It is computed from the information in your credit report: whether you pay on time, how much you owe relative to your limits, how long you have used credit and how many new accounts you opened. FICO is one brand of score; VantageScore is another, and each lender decides which one it uses. A higher score usually brings a lower interest rate and more loan options; each program publishes the minimum it accepts. You can check your report for free and dispute errors.See the full definitionClose model. VantageScoreVantageScoreVantageScore is a credit scoring model separate from FICO. Like any score, it uses a mathematical formula (a scoring model) to estimate, from the data in your credit report, how likely you are to pay on time. The FHFA, the federal agency in charge of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, approved the VantageScore 4.0 version, which takes into account additional sources of data, such as rent payment history. Today, for mortgages sold to those two companies, lenders may use VantageScore 4.0 or Classic FICO, but they must use the same model for every borrower on the same loan.See the full definitionClose says its model uses alternative data, such as rent and utility payments, even if you have a limited history.⁵ And for mortgages, FHFA says the newer models approved for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac take rent payment history into account; for now, lenders can choose between Classic FICO and VantageScore 4.0.⁶ The guide What moves your credit score explains the other factors.

For your mortgage, even if it is not reported. Fannie Mae’s automated system (DU) can take into account your rent history found on your credit report or on a 12-month report of your bank data, and it uses it to improve your assessment.⁷

Example with real numbers

When Fannie Mae's system can use your rent

The Selling Guide's conditions, next to the typical rent in the United States.

Time renting

12 months or more

Minimum monthly rent

$300

Typical monthly rent in the U.S.

$1,413

Your history

No mortgage on your report, a limited history or no score

If rent is not on your report

12 months of data from the bank account you pay from

Result

DU uses your rent history to improve your risk assessment

Conditions from section B3-2-03 of the Fannie Mae Selling Guide.⁷ The typical rent comes from the Census; yours may differ. Work out how much rent you can afford with your own numbers.

Run it with your numbersHow much rent can I afford?

For that, the lender enters your rent in the application and gets 12 months of data from your bank; the account must be yours and must be the one you pay rent from.⁷ If you have no score, rent can also serve as a nontraditional credit reference, documented with canceled checks, bank statements, money orders or verification from your landlord.⁸ The guide Nontraditional credit for a mortgage explains all of those rules.

What it costs and what to ask

The CFPB asks you to consider the fees of these services before you sign up.¹ Before you sign, get the answers in writing:

Questions before you join a rent reporting program

1. 1. Which agencies do you report to?

   First

   The big three use rent information differently; ask whether they report to Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.¹

2. 2. Do you report only on-time payments, or late ones too?

   Before you sign

   Late rent and rent collections can be reported too, and negative items can stay for up to seven years.⁹¹

3. 3. How much does it cost and who pays?

   Before you sign

   Ask the monthly cost, whether there is a signup fee and whether the landlord covers it.¹

4. 4. How do I cancel?

   Before you sign

   Ask how to unenroll and whether they keep charging you afterward.¹

5. 5. What bank data do you need?

   Before you connect your account

   If they ask for access to your bank account, ask what data they see, what they use it for and whom they report it to.³

6. 6. Check your reports afterward

   A few months later

   Confirm the rent appears and the payments show as on time; if something is wrong, dispute it for free.¹⁵

If you pay late: the other side of reporting

Rent reporting works both ways. The big three agencies use rental payment information and also related collectioncollection accountA collection account is a past-due debt that the original creditor (the company that gave you the loan or credit) handed to a debt collector or sold to another company. A debt collector is a person or company that regularly collects debts owed to others, such as a collection agency, a lawyer or a debt buyer. The account can show up on your credit report; once you pay it, it should generally show a zero balance as a paid collection. Most negative information can be reported for up to seven years. If you think you do not owe the debt or the amount is wrong, you can dispute it with the collector and with the credit reporting company.See the full definitionClose information.¹ Credit reporting companies can generally report negative payment information for up to seven years,⁹ and recent negative information weighs more on your score than older information. “On time” means the payment arrives by the due date.¹⁰

A late payment can also show up in the tenant screening reports other landlords use, because those agencies compile your payment history with past landlords.¹ If a landlord requires a co-signer, a larger deposit or higher rent than other applicants because of a tenant screening report, that is also an adverse action.¹²

If you know you will have trouble paying, talk to your landlord before the due date and look for help. If you already got a notice, the guide What to do if you get an eviction notice covers the first steps. A HUD-approved housing counselorHUD-approved housing counselorA HUD-approved housing counselor works at an agency HUD has approved to provide housing counseling: independent, expert advice customized to your situation about buying a home, renting, a missed mortgage payment, a foreclosure or credit problems. The agencies usually charge little or nothing; many serve in Spanish and offer the homebuyer education course several assistance programs require. They are not lenders or real estate agents and sell you nothing. Your county page lists the official agencies with phone numbers.See the full definitionClose gives independent advice on renting and credit, often at little or no cost.¹⁶

If something untrue is reported

Whoever reports your rent (your landlord or the service) has obligations. The law bars them from giving an agency information they know or have reasonable cause to believe is inaccurate. And if you dispute an item with them directly, they may not report it again without noting that it is disputed.¹³

To fix it, the CFPB says to contact both the credit reporting agency and the company that provided the information; your landlord can be that company. You write to the furnisher by certified mail, and it generally must investigate and respond within 30 days.¹⁵ By regulation, when you send a direct disputecredit report disputeA credit report dispute is the complaint you make when your credit report has wrong or incomplete information. You have the right to dispute it, and the investigation is free. It is usually done in two places: with the credit reporting company and with the company that supplied the information, called a furnisher, such as your bank, your landlord or your credit card company. You explain in writing what is wrong and why, with copies of your documents. The credit reporting company must investigate, generally within thirty days, and delete or correct anything found to be inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable.See the full definitionClose, the furnisher must investigate reasonably, review what you sent and, if the item was inaccurate, promptly notify every agency it reported to.¹⁴

If the error is on a tenant screening report, you also have the right to dispute it; the company generally has 30 days to investigate, sometimes 45, and some states set shorter deadlines.¹² If a landlord denies you because of a specialty report, it must give you a notice with the agency’s information, and if you ask, the agency gives you a free copy of the report used.¹ The full steps are in How to dispute credit report errors.

If this is you

You rent from a large management company

Ask at the office whether they take part in a rental reporting program and who pays for it.¹

You want to buy a home soon

Even if your rent is not reported, Fannie Mae's system can see it in 12 months of bank data.⁷

You have no credit score

Reported rent can help you build credit,¹ and without a score it also works as a reference for a mortgage.⁸

You pay rent in cash

Keep receipts or use money orders: Fannie Mae accepts that proof.⁸ See how to rent without a Social Security number or credit.

Common mistakes

• Mistake: Paying for a service without asking your landlord first.

  Instead: Ask first whether they already take part in a rental reporting program.¹

• Mistake: Signing up without reading the fees.

  Instead: The CFPB asks you to consider the fees; ask the monthly cost and how to cancel.¹

• Mistake: Assuming only good payments get reported.

  Instead: Late rent and rent collections can be reported too.¹

• Mistake: Paying rent from different accounts or in cash with no receipt.

  Instead: One account in your name or saved receipts leave the proof lenders ask for.⁸

• Mistake: Ignoring a late payment you never made on your report.

  Instead: Dispute it with the agency and with whoever reported it; they must investigate.¹⁴

What to do this week

1. Get your three reports and look for whether your rent already shows up as an account.¹
2. Ask your landlord whether they take part in a rental reporting program and who pays for it.¹
3. If you compare services, get in writing which agencies they report to, whether they report late payments and what they charge.¹
4. Start paying rent from a bank account in your name, or keep your receipts.⁸
5. If you see a late payment you never made, dispute it in writing with the agency and with whoever reported it.¹⁵
6. Plan your next steps with the credit plan, and if you want help, look for a HUD-approved housing counselor.¹⁶