Of late and as my property journey progresses, I hear more and more about credit checks and tenants failing them and what should happen if they do and so on. In fact only in the last few days I’ve been witness to a conversation that berated a potential tenant because their credit wasn’t perfect and I quote “we don’t deal with tenants that aren’t rich” I mean really? Come on.
I can’t help but think to myself that credit is possibly one of the only items in the modern day, which still borders on being discriminatory given the huge disadvantage that poor credit puts you at and not only that but is still actively encouraged to be so by the masses. Hear me out.
If you said to me I’m sorry we cannot accept your tenancy for this apartment because you are less able than the other applicant: you’re discriminating.
Why can you say to me I’m sorry we cannot accept your tenancy for this apartment because you missed a payment on one of your credit cards two months ago?
I am still being put at a disadvantage because of something that may not be my fault or at best may not be something that was brought about intentionally. If the theoretical disability was my fault as in it had been caused by something I had intentionally done would that make me less disabled and therefore entitled to different treatment or privileges than another person who was less able? Of course not, so I ask you the question – Why should someone who is not as financially astute (or maybe even is but has fallen in difficult times) as another be denied a dwelling in which to live because of a largely computer generated “score” that may well be inaccurate in the first place ?
Should we even go as far as credit checking landlords so a tenant could see if they’re getting into bed with a legitimate person so to speak? Surely if a landlord should know about a tenant who is intending on occupying their property then they should have a right to know about the landlord? In light of the fact that you have a “poor” credit score when you have no credit (figure that one out) and given the recent revelation that a major credit recording company has been hauled over the coals for serious inaccuracies in their recording mechanisms surely that makes the decisions that are based on their inaccurate information negligible at best.
The impending tenant fee ban coincides with this article nicely and begs the question: Does the credit check even have a place in this process anymore? My personal opinion is probably not – after all it’s about the person right? Or wrong? Surely filtering can be done on a more human level?
In a modern day with ultra-fast everything and an available, on-demand world it seems to me that the dreary old credit based points system doesn’t have a place amongst us anymore, it’s old, outdated, inaccurate and frankly a cloak that engulfs a lot of people without telling the entire story. We don’t live in a one size fits all society, except so it would seem when it comes to your credit and ability to obtain it or not….
Let me leave you with a quote for today:
“No matter your past, you have a spotless future” – Hugh B. Brown
Author
Chris Kirkwood
