Page 16 - Dainfern Precinct Living 5 2021

LIFESTYLE
HOW TO REHABILITATE
YOUR CREDIT RECORD
AS A TENANT
n the wake of the pandemic,
many face the reality of their
meticulous credit records being
negatively affected by the
Iwhirlwind of last year’s economic
instability. Landlords and tenants
alike have been affected due to
income loss, leading to missed rent
payments, downsizing and, in some
cases, evictions.
The challenge we now face is, what
can we do? Is it possible to repair
your credit record and get that dream
home? Are your hopes of getting
credit in the future permanently
dashed or can they be rescued?
HOW BIG IS THE PROBLEM?
Shanaaz Trethewey, CEO of
RentMaster, a rental cashflow and
Banks, retailers, rental
companies and landlords use
your credit score to determine
how financially dependable you
are. A poor credit record could
result in your loan application
being declined, higher interest
rates applied to existing loans,
or a refusal of your application
to rent a house or apartment
that you really like.
collection company with a 20-year many years, diligently paying your
track record has this to say: “During monthly rent on time, may simply not
2020, the percentage of total tenants have been recorded by many credit
in good standing with their landlords bureaus.
dropped, as would be expected. In
the first quarter, pre-lockdown saw However, there is a specialist rental
81,52% in good standing. When payment credit bureau, called TPN,
COVID hit, that number decreased to that records tenants’ rental payment
73,5% and, while we saw it gradually data and, when combined with other
start to recover to 74,57% in the third consumer credit data, more complete
quarter and 77,61% in the fourth consumer profiles can be seen. This
quarter, the scale of this drop and means that if you pay your rent on
its impact on the rental income of time every time, it has the same
landlords is undeniable.” positive impact on your credit record
as any other credit transaction.
HOW DOES ONE’S CREDIT
RECORD GET AFFECTED “We have integrated our debit
AND RECORDED? order collection service into TPN’s
It is problematic that, to rent a home lease management software, called
or get a bond, a good credit score is RentBook, which accurately and
essential. Most credit providers will safely records how consistently
not adjust their evaluation, even if tenants have paid,” says Trethewey.
the circumstances you had “This is why private landlords use
were out of your control. us – they get the benefit of the rental
At the same time, it’s collection process whilst their tenants
unfortunate that the have the benefit of payments being
payments that recorded.”
you made
for WHAT HAPPENS IF A TENANT
DOESN’T PAY THEIR RENT?
Because payment profiles are
updated monthly, if a tenant stops
paying rent, a payment flag will reflect
that and impact their credit score.
Their payment data goes to the
TPN Credit Bureau and this
platform allows any blacklistings
to be loaded into both TPN and
TransUnion. To successfully load a
blacklisting, a legal process needs
to be followed, and RentMaster
has been working with landlords for
years in ensuring that this is done
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