Can Evictions Be Removed From Your Credit Report?
Discover how eviction records affect your credit, their reporting duration, and actionable steps to manage or dispute them.
Credit reports summarize an individual’s financial history, influencing access to financial products and services. They detail how consumers manage obligations, including credit accounts, payment histories, and debts. Lenders, landlords, and other entities consult this information to assess financial reliability. An eviction record, while not a direct credit account, can complicate a financial profile due to its impact on housing and future opportunities.
How Eviction Information Appears on Credit Reports
An eviction does not appear directly on a traditional credit report. However, its financial consequences often lead to related entries that affect a consumer’s credit standing. Eviction-related information surfaces on a credit report primarily through unpaid debts and, less commonly, public records.
Unpaid rent, damages, or other financial obligations from an eviction can be sent to collection agencies by a landlord. A debt placed with a collection agency appears on a credit report as a collection account. These accounts negatively impact a credit score. Reported details include the date the account went into collection, the amount owed, and the collection agency’s name.
An eviction may also involve a court judgment if a landlord sues for unpaid rent or damages. Historically, civil judgments were reported as public records on credit reports. Since 2017, major consumer reporting agencies stopped including most civil judgments and tax liens due to concerns about incomplete identifying information. Specialized tenant screening services often access these public records, which can still impact future housing applications.
Standard Durations for Eviction Records
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) governs how long eviction-related information remains on a credit report. Under the FCRA, most negative information, including collection accounts and civil judgments, can remain for up to seven years. This period begins from the date of the event that led to the negative entry.
For collection accounts from unpaid rent or damages, the seven-year reporting period starts from the original delinquency date, when payment was first missed. Even if the debt is paid, the collection account record may remain for the full seven-year duration, reflecting the past delinquency. While civil judgments are generally no longer reported by major credit bureaus, bankruptcy filings, which might include eviction-related debt, remain on a credit report for seven to ten years depending on the bankruptcy type.
Challenging Inaccurate Eviction Records
Consumers have a right to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information on their credit reports under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The process begins by obtaining copies from the three major consumer reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. These reports are accessible for free once every 12 months through AnnualCreditReport.com. Review them to identify errors related to an eviction, such as an incorrect amount or date, or an entry not belonging to you.
Gathering supporting documentation is important for preparing a dispute. Evidence can include court dismissal papers if a case was resolved in your favor, proof of payment if debt was settled, or lease agreements. Once compiled, initiate a dispute directly with each credit bureau, online or by mail. The dispute should state the inaccurate information and include copies of all supporting documents.
Upon receiving a dispute, the credit bureau must investigate the claim, generally within 30 days. The bureau forwards information to the furnisher, the entity that provided the data, such as the landlord or collection agency. If the information is found to be inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable, the credit bureau must correct, block, or delete the entry.
Addressing Eviction Records After Resolution
Even when an eviction record is accurate but the financial issue is resolved, approaches exist to mitigate its impact. For collection accounts, negotiating with the original landlord or collection agency may be possible. “Pay for delete” is a strategy where a consumer offers to pay the debt for its removal from the credit report. While not legally obligated to agree and technically an FCRA violation, some agencies may consider this. Any such agreement should be secured in writing before payment, stating deletion from all credit bureaus is a condition.
If “pay for delete” is not feasible, paying off the debt updates the collection account to “paid” or “satisfied” status. Although the account remains on the report for seven years, a paid status is viewed more favorably by lenders. This update can positively influence a credit score.
In limited circumstances, sealing or expunging an eviction court record may be possible. This process varies by jurisdiction and applies under strict legal criteria, such as case dismissal, tenant prevailing, or significant time passed with all obligations satisfied. Sealing removes the record from public view, while expungement aims to erase it. This legal recourse is rare and often requires legal counsel due to its complexity.