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Posted by me again on February 04, 2002 at 19:47:05:

In Reply to: Re: Withholding Rent and Ability of Landlords to Ruin Credit Rating posted by Adam on February 04, 2002 at 19:17:28:

: I'd still like to know what specifically a landlord can do to a renter's credit rating. Can a landlord even do anything without a court judgement against me?

sure he can, does Visa have to get a judgement on you before they mark you down as being 'late'? nope.
the actual number of landlords who report to credit bureaus is very small, but getting larger all the time.
additionally to that, he has his own 'opinion' and records of your tenancy, and landlord references are very important, as most landlords will end up calling AT LEAST your last 2 landlords. two questions that they almost invariably ask each other are:

1) did they always pay their rent on time? answer for you: NO.
2) would you rent to them again? answer for you: NO.

and guess what the response to your application would be? you guessed it, NO.

on the tenant-side of things though, i think you are probably justified in the 1 month of rent withheld, considering 2 months without hot water, and sounds like a good starting point for negotiation with the landlord. i'm sure that before he actually takes you to court (if that happens, considering the situation), that he would make some offer to you for the obvious reduction in service.
till then, keep the month's rent available in case you are ordered to pay it, and see who blinks first.

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• Re: Withholding Rent and Ability of Landlords to Ruin Credit Rating Lilly 02/05/02 (0)

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Comments:
: :      I'd still like to know what specifically a landlord can do to a renter's credit rating.  Can a landlord even do anything without a court judgement against me?

: sure he can, does Visa have to get a judgement on you before they mark you down as being 'late'? nope. 
: the actual number of landlords who report to credit bureaus is very small, but getting larger all the time. 
: additionally to that, he has his own 'opinion' and records of your tenancy, and landlord references are very important, as most landlords will end up calling AT LEAST your last 2 landlords. two questions that they almost invariably ask each other are: 

: 1) did they always pay their rent on time? answer for you: NO. 
: 2) would you rent to them again? answer for you: NO. 

: and guess what the response to your application would be? you guessed it, NO. 

: on the tenant-side of things though, i think you are probably justified in the 1 month of rent withheld, considering 2 months without hot water, and sounds like a good starting point for negotiation with the landlord. i'm sure that before he actually takes you to court (if that happens, considering the situation), that he would make some offer to you for the obvious reduction in service. 
: till then, keep the month's rent available in case you are ordered to pay it, and see who blinks first.   


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