Extra cash for poor credit tenant?

[Brentin Trent]

I got the below message from a prospective tenant, stating her credit is not good but she can front money to offset this fact. I’m in Maryland and I think the most the law will allow is 2x rent for a security deposit. What would you do in this scenario assuming stable employment, which is not a given as I have not sent the pre screen. Would you ever consider easing credit score restrictions to fill a unit? I wonder how much credit score really matters versus history. I’d think. A low credit score from no credit is much better than bad credit.

“Thank you for responding. The 28th works for me or the 1st. The sooner the better for me. If it will help speed the process up once I view the property I would absolutely welcome a call to discuss the qualifications. To be fair I do not know how strict the credit requirements are, but I am a recently coming out of a difficult divorce and my credit reflects that. However, I am in the position to pay a minimum of four months rent in advance. Anyway, we can discuss the details when we speak. I look forward to hearing from you. I can be reached at”

[John Teachout]

We will accept a lower credit score "sometimes" on a case by case basis. Our general requirement is 600. If someone is in the 560 range or higher and everything else looks good we'll usually offer a contract with an additional 50% security deposit. If they pay perfectly for the first 6 months we return that. It makes a big difference to us "why" their credit score is low. If someone doesn't pay their bills and has charge offs, items in collections, repossessed vehicles and any of these items are recent history, then sorry, we can't offer a contract. If the credit score is low because of an event (health, divorce, etc) then we'll weigh our options...

For the most part, this has worked out. But if someone's credit score is very low or has recent marks, we move on. Just be cautious on this one. An empty unit is not the worst situation by a long shot.