Using a Credit Card to Pay Your Rent . Common scores include the FICO® score and the VantageScore. Your actual rate depends upon credit score, loan amount, loan term, and credit usage and history, and will be agreed upon between you and the lender. The most recent FICO model, FICO 9, does indeed include rent payments in credit score calculations, assuming your landlord reports. This can further benefit your credit, as account history makes up 15% of your credit score, according to FICO. You can use a rent-reporting service to add payments to your credit reports, helping some credit scores. Your score is usually accessible for a small fee when you order your free annual credit report. Tenant credit score. The service includes a copy of your credit score. Rock the Score verifies your rent payments with your landlord each month and updates your credit score with your payment information. All other factors being equal, the higher the credit score, the more likely the landlord will choose to rent to you. Both models generate scores within a range from 300-850. Open a credit card and use it to pay your rent (if your landlord accepts credit cards as a payment method), then pay your credit card balance in full each month. The most widely used credit-scoring model -- the FICO Score 8 -- doesn't count rent payments in its calculations. Other Ways to Build Credit. You'll pay $25 to enroll in the service and $8.95 each month for ongoing reporting as of March 2020. Rent isn't typically reported to credit bureaus. Renters with subpar credit scores often get help from a co-signer (also called a guarantor). However, newer versions of the FICO score, including the FICO 9 … 8. If you use one, that person’s credit score is taken into … For example, you could receive a loan of $6,000 with an interest rate of 7.99% and a 5.00% origination fee of $300 for an APR of 11.51%. People with thin credit files (no credit or limited credit) report seeing their credit score increase by hundreds of points. Boston Millennials are next with an average score of 721, followed by New York Millennials with 719. VantageScore also includes rent history in its score calculations. Getting your rent and utility payments added to your credit report is far from the only way to build your credit. Depending on the service and credit bureau, the tenant’s credit score may vary slightly. I enrolled for rent reporting with Credit Rent Boost in March and saw about a 15 point credit increase at TransUnion when they reported my previous 24 months of rental payments. Pulling a copy of your credit report from all three bureaus can help you know your score, as well as give you an opportunity to check and dispute any erroneous negative information before filling out the rental application. The youngest generation, Gen Z, boasts the highest average score for renting in Boston (691), one of the top college cities in the country (Slide 4). Rent Reporters reports to TransUnion. However, San Francisco is where Millennial renters have the highest average credit score, of 726 (Slide 3). 850 is a perfect credit score, an average credit score tends to be in the range of 620-679, and if your credit score falls below 620, you may be considered high risk. Rent reporting companies validate your payment history in two ways: by checking your bank statements or credit card accounts, or by sending your payments directly to your landlord. You can use a credit card to pay your rent and boost your credit score in an indirect way. Your payment history accounts for 35% of your credit score, so the best way to build your credit is to pay all of your bills on time—every time..