What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
Texas
I'm a newly graduated college student. I just got a new job, and so to perform that job, I applied to get my first apartment. I wanted to have a good idea of what the apartment management would be judging me on, so I went ahead and got my credit report. My credit would actually be in the 750 range - which I personally feel is decent for someone that just graduated.
However, when I applied, I found out that I owed $185 that I didn't know I owed. The debt was to an apartment from my *sophomore* year of college. Apparently, they had charged me after I moved out for having to steam-clean my room.
Now, I'm not upset about the $185 - if my room is a mess, it was a mess. But I never knew that I owed this money, nor do they have any record showing that they provided me notice.
As a result of this, an apartment complex I applied to wanted a month's worth of rent - roughly $1200 - as a deposit. Typically, the deposit is about $175.
I contacted the apartment I used to live at, and they confirmed my story exactly. I paid the account that I didn't know about, and they wrote me a letter admitting that they were in the wrong and that they hadn't properly communicated what fees I owed when I left. That's all fine and dandy, but at the end of the day, my credit score went down for that mistake, and it might go down even more for an admission of debt.
So I guess my question is, "can I salvage my credit in light of the apartment complex's admission of their mistake?"
My credit score dropped *eighty* points over $180.
Texas
I'm a newly graduated college student. I just got a new job, and so to perform that job, I applied to get my first apartment. I wanted to have a good idea of what the apartment management would be judging me on, so I went ahead and got my credit report. My credit would actually be in the 750 range - which I personally feel is decent for someone that just graduated.
However, when I applied, I found out that I owed $185 that I didn't know I owed. The debt was to an apartment from my *sophomore* year of college. Apparently, they had charged me after I moved out for having to steam-clean my room.
Now, I'm not upset about the $185 - if my room is a mess, it was a mess. But I never knew that I owed this money, nor do they have any record showing that they provided me notice.
As a result of this, an apartment complex I applied to wanted a month's worth of rent - roughly $1200 - as a deposit. Typically, the deposit is about $175.
I contacted the apartment I used to live at, and they confirmed my story exactly. I paid the account that I didn't know about, and they wrote me a letter admitting that they were in the wrong and that they hadn't properly communicated what fees I owed when I left. That's all fine and dandy, but at the end of the day, my credit score went down for that mistake, and it might go down even more for an admission of debt.
So I guess my question is, "can I salvage my credit in light of the apartment complex's admission of their mistake?"
My credit score dropped *eighty* points over $180.
