How Does an Eviction
Impact Credit Scores?

How does an eviction impact my credit? The major credit reporting agencies – Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion, stopped reporting most public records on a consumer’s traditional credit report, such as tax liens and civil judgments (including evictions), as part of the National Consumer Assistance Plan. By April 2018, the three credit reporting agencies removed all remaining tax liens and public records from the consumer’s credit report. Bankruptcy is the only public record that appears on your credit report.

It is important to note that although an eviction will not show up on your traditional credit report, your eviction may likely have an impact on the following:‍

1. Consumer Reporting Agencies

The impact of an eviction, regardless of the outcome, may be reported to a consumer reporting agency that provides tenant screening services to landlords, apartments, and property managers. When applying for future rental properties, landlords will assess your risk by requesting a tenant screening report. These consumer reporting agencies include but are not limited to:

1. Experian RentBureau: www.experian.com/rental-property-solutions/rentbureau
   
2. LexisNexis Risk Solutions: consumer.risk.lexisnexis.com/request‍
   
3. RealPage Leasing Desk: www.realpage.com/support/consumer‍
   

If your rental application is declined, you have the right to ask your landlord which consumer reporting agency was consulted in the decision. You can then request a copy of your report from that consumer reporting agency.

For more information about the impact of an eviction, please contact our advisors at (713) 322-4799 or on our website to have one of our advisors get in touch with you.

2. Outstanding Balances

‍If you still owe your landlord any outstanding balance, including the amount from your eviction judgment, it could be handed over to a collection agency that reports to credit bureaus such as Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. This could result in a collections tradeline appearing on your credit report for up to 7 years, potentially having a negative impact on your credit score.
 
We recommend that you communicate directly with your landlord, property manager, or apartment management to settle any remaining balance after you move out. This process involves obtaining a written breakdown of any charges imposed by your landlord (such as cleaning, repairs, damages, etc.), taking into account any payment credits and your deposit.

Upon receiving the breakdown of charges/fees, review and dispute any additional charges that exceed the agreed-upon amount. It is important to resolve any outstanding balance with your landlord before it is sent to a collection agency.

If your account has been sent to a collection agency, you can try to reach an agreement with your landlord to have them withdraw the account from collections and remove the collections record from your credit report. If your landlord is unable to do this directly, you can negotiate a settlement agreement with the collection agency, with the condition that they delete the collections record from your credit report (pay for delete).

For more information about the impact of an eviction, please contact our advisors at (713) 322-4799 or on our website to have one of our advisors get in touch with you.

3. The Plaintiff May Pursue Legal Remedies

1. Filing an abstract of judgment with the county clerk creates a lien or claim on any non-exempt real estate property owned. This may also affect your ability to acquire real estate in the future.
   
2. Requesting the court to compel you to submit interrogatories (where the court compels the judgment debtor to answer questions to the creditor).
   
3. Levy on your non-exempt assets pursuant to the Texas Civil Remedies.
   

For more information about the impact of an eviction, please contact our advisors at (713) 322-4799 or on our website to have one of our advisors get in touch with you.

Let us get you relief.

For more information, speak to our advisors at (713) 322-4799 or contact us through our website with your availability so one of our advisors can get in touch with you.