Understanding Your Eviction History: What Landlords See & How to Check

Learn about what landlords will find in your background.

A previous eviction can haunt your rental history and make it difficult to rent a new place when you need to. Check your eviction history so that you can learn if the previous evictions show up on your credit reports and your rental history. Learning what is on your history will help you, because you can know in advance what parts of your history you will have to explain to new landlords and if you have to save up an extra amount for a larger deposit on the rental unit.

Step 1

Get a copy of your credit report from the three major credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Examine your credit reports to see if any court-ordered money that you owe to the landlord shows up on the report.

Step 2

Conduct a public record search by going to your local court house and requesting the public search. Pay any fees that the court house requires and bring identification to show the court clerk so that she knows you are searching for your own information.

Step 3

Run a background check on yourself to see what kind of information comes up. You can run a criminal background check through the state police and a tenant background check through tenant screening companies. This allows you to learn what is available on your background information.

Step 4

Collect all old court orders and court paperwork. Examine the court paperwork to see if the landlord's eviction notice went through. Request a copy of the court orders from the court house that the landlord filed the eviction with.