discourage renters with credit score requirements

Started by RichardG8 • 5 replies • 1663 views

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RichardG8 (Florida)
Posts: 3

Posted:

20% of the homes in our development are rental properties, some of which are Section Eight. Can we require that potential renters must meet certain credit scores and/or income levels? Have other HOAs been successful in doing this?

BrianB (California)
Posts: 2,820

Posted:

I am not a lawyer, but..

yes, you can require anything you want of renters. Credit score, physical beauty, religious affiliation, etc..

HOA's have not been very successful at doing so, however. Lawyers for the plaintiffs have done very well though.

I am curious: what characteristics in a homeowner/neighbor are you desiring that a credit score tells you?

I for one want my neighbors to be quiet in the evenings, not be convicted murderers, pick up their trash before it blows into my yard, keep the fence between us repaired, have power tools I can borrow, return my tools when they borrow them, offer me iced tea across the fence on a hot day, kill rattlesnakes in their yard so they don't come to mine, not start wildfires by cutting metal next to dry tinder on a hot August day, not get drunk and shout/scream about Vietnam (especially since they are my age, and couldn't have been more than 8th grade when Saigon fell), etc..

Which of those do I avoid/get with a credit score of 650?

JohnC46 (South Carolina)
Posts: 14,265

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By BrianB on 06/28/2013 3:21 PM
I am not a lawyer, but..

yes, you can require anything you want of renters. Credit score, physical beauty, religious affiliation, etc..

HOA's have not been very successful at doing so, however. Lawyers for the plaintiffs have done very well though.

I am curious: what characteristics in a homeowner/neighbor are you desiring that a credit score tells you?

I for one want my neighbors to be quiet in the evenings, not be convicted murderers, pick up their trash before it blows into my yard, keep the fence between us repaired, have power tools I can borrow, return my tools when they borrow them, offer me iced tea across the fence on a hot day, kill rattlesnakes in their yard so they don't come to mine, not start wildfires by cutting metal next to dry tinder on a hot August day, not get drunk and shout/scream about Vietnam (especially since they are my age, and couldn't have been more than 8th grade when Saigon fell), etc..

Which of those do I avoid/get with a credit score of 650?

And have an 18 year old daughter that thinks it so European to sunbathe topless....

SheliaH (Indiana)
Posts: 6,964

Posted:

You'll have to check your documents first to see if you can require anything of renters. Since the renters sign leases with the homeowner, not the association, your best bet is to make sure the owner has educated the tenants on the community rules and that he/she understands he's ultimately responsible for their behavior. When things go wrong, you hammer the homeowner - the good ones will address the problem quickly. Better yet, the good homeowner/landlord will take care in selecting a tenant (why rent to people who will tear your house up?)

I understand the thinking behind this - people with decent credit scores appear to have some sense of responsibility and are less likely to become the neighbors from hell, but if you've read anything in and around this website, you know that income has little or nothing to do with common courtesy. In fact, the biggest jackasses around can be the ones with gigantic checking accounts!

If it is not right do not do it; if it is not true do not say it. Marcus Aurelius

SteveM9 (Massachusetts)
Posts: 3,699

Posted:

Quote:

In fact, the biggest jackasses around can be the ones with gigantic checking accounts!

So true.........

JulianneW (California)
Posts: 25

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By RichardG8 on 06/28/2013 12:10 PM
20% of the homes in our development are rental properties, some of which are Section Eight. Can we require that potential renters must meet certain credit scores and/or income levels? Have other HOAs been successful in doing this?

You'd probably want to check your state's laws regarding housing discrimination before attempting this. Instead of targeting Section 8 rentals, you may want to specify that landlords cannot rent to anyone with a criminal record. Again, you'll need to check with an attorney.

Aside from that, what you probably really want is landlords who do a better job of screening tenants.

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