Finding the perfect rental is hard, but being approved for it is even more difficult. Unfortunately, you are competing with other students from your school who like the same features you do, but there may be things in your past impacting your ability to snag a rental. Luckily, it’s not all up to mystery. Here are the four most common reasons college students’ rental applications are denied, and what you can do next to improve for next time.
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1. You Were Too Slow
The first reason your rental application was denied, unfortunately, doesn’t have anything to do with you or your history. Sometimes, other renters were faster than you and submitted their application earlier than you did. If they took a tour and immediately signed a lease, that’s that, and there’s no room for you to get in unless something happens to fall through with the other students. That’s not always likely if they have already signed the lease.
What To Do Next:
Going forward, you need to submit your rental applications as soon as you see the listing pop up. Don’t save it to fill out this weekend, but do it right away! Any time you spend waiting is time someone else, equally as qualified as you, is filling out the same application.
While you want to be speedy, you still need to fill out your application accurately. Any mistakes in your application, regardless of how small or major, can also cause your rental application to be denied.
2. Your Income is Too Low
A very common reason your rental application was denied, especially as a college student, is that your income is too low for the cost of the rent. Landlords and property managers are renting their property as an extra source of income, so if they think you’ll often miss payments or give them too late, they’re likely to deny your application.
What To Do Next:
I know, getting a full-time job, or even part-time, depending on your studies, while living as a full-time college student isn’t really feasible. If you have low income or no proof of income for your rental applications, there are still a couple of ways that you can get around that. You may want to consider a guarantor or co-signer, such as one of your parents. A guarantor will be financially responsible for your rent if your payments were to fall through, so landlords are more comfortable with one on the line. However, you should still pay your own rent!
If you have enough money in your savings for the duration of your lease, you can also consider providing bank statements with your rental application. This can be enough to qualify you if you were planning on using your sayings, or if you don’t have proof of income quite yet.
3. Substandard References
Unfortunately, it is very possible that the references supposed to vouch for your responsibility as a tenant did the exact opposite and gave you a bad rep. Or, it’s possible that your references didn’t answer any phone calls or emails, and therefore made it difficult for these new landlords to gauge how you would be as a new tenant.
What To Do Next:
Before you put a previous landlord or property manager down as a reference, you should think back to what kind of experience they may have had with you. Even if you had a great time living there, put yourself in their shoes. Did you ever miss rent, even just once? Did you leave a huge mess behind when you moved out that they had to clean up? While these might not have seemed like a big deal to you, they could still give you a bad reference and cause your rental application to be denied.
You should also contact them before putting their information down. They might not be willing to answer calls from an unknown number. However, if you talk to them and ask if you can put them down as a reference, they will expect it. Plus, if you ask their permission, they may or may not be honest if they’re willing to put in a good word for you.
4. A Ding in Your Background Check
Another reason your rental application may have been denied is because of something that popped up in a background check. This could include prior arrests or criminal history, a poor credit score, and any previous evictions.
What To Do Next:
Don’t worry, it’s still possible to find a place if your background check isn’t exactly squeaky clean. If you have a criminal record, you should be up front about it and explain the situation and even offer to pay a few extra months of rent up front to alleviate that kind of concern.
If your credit score is low, which is very likely as a college student, you can work on improving it. You can look into starter credit cards to help build your score, but be careful and use them wisely.
So if your rental application for an apartment was denied for one of these four reasons, follow the above tips to improve your application for next time.
Equal Housing Opportunity
