Topic: What do you do when the spouse of an applicant (with excellent credit) has NO credit score?

Hello friends...so...what do you do when the spouse of an applicant (with excellent credit) has NO credit score? This individual has literally NEVER bought anything on credit. If we have a minimum credit score requirement for each applicant...how do I proceed?

No credit isn’t bad credit. Use the spouses.

That's my feeling too. She does have assets

Depends what your requirements are. We require all adults to qualify regardless of marital status. In Minnesota marital status is a protected class, so you can't use that in your criteria in any way

Joint and several liability. One spouse is basically the guarantor of the other

Guess it depends on management co but you could ask for a small deposit. Weird they wouldn’t just pass since they are married? It’s credit not criminal.

It is possible. Not likely but possible. If they saved and paid cash for everything they wouldn’t have a credit score. A credit score only shows how well you handle debt. Maybe they have never been in debt.

It’s also possible that they hired a company to wipe out the credit file. I know people that have done this, and it literally removed everything and they started at zero!!
How old is he? Not because age would matter, but if he is in his 30’s, 40’s, or 50’s having a zero score would be nearly impossible..

I’d do one months rent for a deposit. When or if they ask “why” I usually say “the system doesn’t tell me much but does tell me it may have something to do with credit”. I’ve never had anyone have an issue after that:)

That’s awesome of them! Don’t punish them for that.
What is your company policy? If there isn’t one, have you verified his employment? He did show up when you screened him?
If he checks out otherwise, there’s no need to not approve them.
Could she qualify financially alone.

This happened to my husband and I. Our score was 750 and we decided to get totally out of debt and stop buying on credit. We did! However, several years later we thought, Hey, maybe it's time for a NEW car. We had been purchasing used cars and paying cash. When we applied for a new car loan, we were turned down and told our score dropped to zero because we had not used credit in over 2 years. We literally had to start over and build up our credit again. We started with a secured credit card - like an 18 yr old just out of high school. ????‍♀️. BUT here we are 3 1/2 years later and our credit score is 830.

I always say no credit is better than bad credit!

Unless you’re prepared to change your entire company guideline with regards to your credit requirement moving forward, you have to unfortunately deny or it’s a fair housing issue. We’ve lost what I’m sure are great residents to this issue (we require a minimum of 6 months credit or rental history) but if we allowed it solely because they are married, it opens up a can of worms. And that my response to them exactly. Plus, what if a couple isn’t or can’t get married?
Someone suggested they add themselves to a spouse’s existing credit and that’s a great workaround. They assume that credit history and then fit within your boundaries. It just takes 30 days to appear on a credit report.
If you think this policy is hindering your leasing, you need to discuss the criteria with your company first, before altering the policy. While we probably lose some good residents with our criteria, I know we avoid some potential issues too. It’s never a perfect system.

I believe you answered your own question. You have a minimum score requirement for each applicant. They don’t meet that qualification. However, do you use a screening agency? If so, what was their decision.

We process people together so, if the spouse has “excellent” credit - they’d be approve with no additional deposit with my company, more than likely.
I’ve been doing Dave Ramsey for 2 years now. I have 0 credit cards and I don’t plan on ever using them again. So, I understand why some people have never used “credit” - it’s sad they could be punished for it in certain situations... not your fault but to me, I see it as a good thing.

I have had parents be a guarantor and ran their credit and it come back that way. The reason for it was because they have it locked with credit reporting agencies. They have to call to unlock to have it ran.

Depends on how old that person is. If they're early 20's, I can believe they don't have any credit. Any older than that, they're likely lying. They would have at least some credit history, a car loan or even just inquiries for phones, apartments, electric service, etc.

We need proof of being able to pay rent for a lease term. We go by past debts owed to landlords/utilities, savings and/or employment. Some people don’t want to be in debt (have any kind of credit score), and I’m married to one of those folks. Lol

No credit Is better than bad credit

We would just add them as an occupant that way credit doesn’t come into play.

If it’s a spouse and the other spouse has credit, we would accept. As long as the couple collectively meets the criteria.

Not really. My wife was in her late forties when we got married. She had zero credit because she paid everything in cash. She is a bit of a shopaholic and does not trust herself with a credit card. By paying cash for everything, it kept her out of trouble.