This Act prohibits housing providers from using tenant credit reports or credit history information when screening prospective or current renters, with a narrow exception for reconsidering an initial denial.
Maxwell Frost
Representative
FL-10
The End Tenant Credit Screening Act generally prohibits landlords and property managers from using consumer reports containing credit history or credit standing for tenant screening purposes, even with applicant consent. This restriction applies to decisions about approving an application, setting security deposits, or determining lease terms. The only exception allows credit checks if a housing provider decides to reconsider an initial denial of an application.
New Act Bans Landlords from Using Credit Scores for Rental Decisions, Easing Housing Access
If you’ve ever had a great job, solid savings, and a clean rental history, but still got dinged for an apartment because of a few old medical bills crushing your credit score, this bill is for you. The End Tenant Credit Screening Act aims to fundamentally change how landlords size up potential renters by taking the credit score largely out of the equation.
The Credit Score Ban: What’s Off the Table?
This Act basically amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) to prohibit housing providers—that’s landlords and property managers—from using your credit history, credit standing, or credit capacity when deciding whether to rent to you, how much security deposit to charge, or whether to renew your lease (Sec. 2). This is a big deal. It means those standard credit checks that pull your FICO score and list every debt you’ve ever had are generally off-limits for tenant screening purposes. The law is clear: even if you sign a form saying it’s okay for them to check your credit, they still can’t use that information to make their decision.
For the busy person, this means if you’re a contractor who owns their own business but had a rough financial patch years ago, or a recent graduate with thin credit, you won’t be automatically disqualified. Landlords will be forced to look at more relevant factors, like your current income, employment history, and past rental behavior, rather than focusing on a three-digit number that often reflects past struggles more than current stability.
The One Exception: When They Can Look
Like most laws, this one has a specific carve-out (Sec. 2). A housing provider is generally banned from checking credit, except if they initially reject your application and then decide to individually reconsider that denial. In that specific scenario, they can pull a report. Think of it like this: they can’t use credit to deny you in the first place, but if they deny you based on, say, income verification issues, and then you appeal and provide more context, they can use a credit report as part of that second, individualized look. This exception is narrow, though, and doesn't undermine the main ban.
What This Means for Landlords and Renters
For renters, the benefit is clear: increased access to housing, especially for those with low or non-traditional credit who are otherwise financially stable. This is a huge win for housing equity, forcing the focus onto a tenant’s ability to pay now, not their financial history from five years ago.
For landlords and property managers, this is going to be a significant adjustment. They rely heavily on credit reports as a quick and easy risk assessment tool. Taking that away means they'll have to get more creative and perhaps more rigorous in verifying employment, income, and previous tenancy references. This shift could lead to more administrative work and potentially stricter requirements in other areas, but it also pushes them toward a more holistic, individualized assessment of risk. The bottom line is that the barrier to entry for renting just got a little lower for the millions of Americans who have decent income but less-than-stellar credit.