An eviction can stay on your tenant screening reports for up to seven years. That is the limit the Fair Credit Reporting Act sets for lawsuits and court judgments, and it can run longer if your state’s statute of limitations on the judgment is longer. The eviction itself doesn’t appear on your Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion credit reports, but unpaid rent that goes to a collection agency can stay on your credit reports for about seven years.
The court case is a separate record again. Depending on your state, the case file can stay public long after it has dropped off screening reports. This guide explains each record, how long it lasts, and what you can do about an eviction that is wrong, outdated, or should have been sealed.
Key Takeaways
- Tenant screening companies can generally report an eviction case or judgment for seven years, or longer if the statute of limitations on the judgment runs longer.
- Evictions haven’t appeared on Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion credit reports since July 2017, when the bureaus removed civil judgments.
- Unpaid rent sent to collections can stay on your credit reports for seven years, counted from 180 days after you first fell behind.
- The court record is separate. Some states seal or restrict eviction cases; in others they stay public.
- You have the right to dispute an eviction on a tenant screening report that is inaccurate, belongs to someone else, is too old, or leaves out that you won or the case was dismissed.
Where Does an Eviction Show Up, and for How Long?
“Your record” can mean four different things. Each follows its own rules:
| Record | What it shows | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Tenant screening report | Eviction filings, judgments, and sometimes rental history and amounts owed | Up to 7 years, or longer if the statute of limitations on a judgment is longer |
| Court record | The eviction case itself: filing, hearings, and outcome | Set by your state; can stay public indefinitely unless sealed |
| Credit reports (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion) | Not the eviction itself, only a collection account for unpaid rent or damages | About 7 years from the original delinquency |
| Public records reports (such as LexisNexis) | Eviction filings and judgments pulled from court records | Generally 7 years under the same FCRA limits |
How Long Does an Eviction Stay on a Tenant Screening Report?
Landlords and property managers use tenant screening companies, which are consumer reporting agencies under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Under section 605 of the FCRA, they can’t report civil suits or civil judgments more than seven years after the date of entry, or until the governing statute of limitations has expired, whichever is longer.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau puts it simply: eviction court cases could be on your tenant screening record for up to seven years. It adds two points worth knowing:
- If you owed a debt or money judgment to a landlord and later discharged it in bankruptcy, that information could stay for 10 years, the same as the bankruptcy.
- Some states seal or expunge eviction records, and some limit whether landlords can use eviction lawsuit information at all.
There’s no exception for renting. The FCRA allows older information only for credit or life insurance of $150,000 or more and jobs paying $75,000 or more a year.
Does an Eviction Go on Your Credit Report?
No. Evictions are public records, but they don’t appear on Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion credit reports. The three bureaus removed all civil judgments from credit reports in July 2017 under new public record standards, according to the CFPB. That included judgments landlords won in eviction cases.
What can appear is the money. If you left owing rent, fees, or damages and the landlord sent the balance to a collection agency, the collector can report it as a collection account. That collection affects your credit scores and shows up whenever a landlord pulls your credit as part of screening.
Eviction filings do appear on some specialty reports that pull from court records. A LexisNexis consumer report, for example, can list eviction filings and judgments.
How Long Does Unpaid Rent Stay on Your Credit Report?
A collection account for unpaid rent can stay on your credit reports for seven years. The clock starts 180 days after the date you first fell behind on the debt, not on the date the collector bought it or last reported it, so the full span is about seven and a half years from the missed payment.
Paying the collection doesn’t remove it, but the account should update to show a zero balance. Selling the debt to a new collector doesn’t restart the clock either. If the dates, balance, or status are wrong, you can dispute them. Our guide to disputing a collection account walks through the process.
How Do You Get Your Tenant Screening Report?
There are two ways to see what landlords see:
- After a denial. If a landlord turns you down, charges a higher deposit, or requires a cosigner because of a screening report, it must give you an adverse action notice. The notice names the company that supplied the report, and you can get a free copy from that company if you ask within 60 days.
- Once a year. Tenant screening companies that keep files nationwide must give you one free copy every 12 months on request. The CFPB keeps a list of consumer reporting companies with a tenant screening section and contact details. We explain how these specialty agencies work in our guide to secondary credit bureaus.
Different landlords use different screening companies, so an eviction can appear on one report and not another.
How Do You Remove an Eviction From Your Record?
An accurate eviction generally stays until the reporting period ends. But many eviction entries aren’t accurate, and some records can be sealed or resolved.
- Dispute errors with the screening company. This is the most direct route when the entry is wrong. Common problems include a case that belongs to someone with a similar name, an entry older than the seven-year limit, a case that was dismissed or that you won but is listed without the outcome, the same case listed twice, and a case a court has sealed.
- Ask the court about sealing. Some states let you ask the court to seal or expunge an eviction record, and a few restrict access automatically. In California, for example, eviction case records are restricted from public view when the case is filed and generally become public only if the landlord wins (Code of Civil Procedure 1161.2). Your state court, attorney general, or local legal aid office can tell you what’s available where you live.
- Talk to your former landlord. If the case is still open, a settlement can include dismissing it. After a judgment, some landlords will agree to ask the court to vacate or dismiss it, often after the balance is paid. Get any agreement in writing before you pay.
- Deal with the collection separately. Removing an eviction from a screening report doesn’t touch a collection account on your credit reports, and the reverse is also true. Check each record on its own.
How Do You Dispute an Eviction on a Tenant Screening Report?
Under section 611 of the FCRA, a screening company must investigate a dispute, generally within 30 days, and correct or delete information it can’t verify. To make your dispute count:
- Write to the company that supplied the report, using the dispute address in your copy or on its website. A written dispute creates a record of what you asked and when.
- Identify the exact entry: court, case number, and filing date.
- Say what’s wrong and what the correct information is. For example: “This case was dismissed on [date],” or “This case was filed more than seven years ago.”
- Include copies of your proof, such as a dismissal order, a judgment in your favor, a satisfaction of judgment, a sealing order, or ID showing you aren’t the person named.
- Keep copies of everything, and request an updated copy of your report when the investigation is finished.
If the company verifies an entry you know is wrong, send a second dispute with any additional documents. Courts are the source of the record, so a certified copy of the court’s docket or final order is often the strongest evidence you can send.
Can You Rent With an Eviction on Your Record?
Yes, though it takes more work. Landlords set their own standards, and many weigh how long ago the eviction happened, whether you paid what you owed, and your rental history since. Things that often help:
- Explaining the eviction briefly and honestly before the landlord finds it.
- Showing proof that the balance was paid or settled.
- Offering references from landlords you’ve rented from since.
- Offering a larger deposit, a cosigner, or a few months of rent upfront where that’s allowed.
- Applying with smaller landlords, who may review applications individually instead of using an automatic cutoff.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does an eviction go away after seven years?
It should drop off tenant screening reports after seven years from the date of entry, unless the statute of limitations on a judgment is longer. The court record may still be public, depending on your state.
Does an eviction notice go on your record?
A notice from your landlord, such as a notice to pay or quit, isn’t a court case and doesn’t create an eviction record on its own. The record starts when the landlord files an eviction lawsuit with the court.
Will a dismissed eviction show up on a tenant screening report?
It can, because the filing itself is a court record. A screening report should be accurate and complete, though, and a dismissed case listed without its outcome is worth disputing with a copy of the dismissal.
Can a landlord remove an eviction from your record?
A landlord can’t delete a court record, but it can agree to dismiss an open case or join a request to vacate a judgment. A court order is what changes the record; a landlord’s letter on its own usually doesn’t.
How long does an eviction stay on your credit report?
The eviction itself doesn’t appear on your credit reports. A collection account for unpaid rent can stay for seven years, counted from 180 days after you first fell behind.
What’s the Next Step?
Start by getting your own records: your tenant screening reports from the companies landlords use, and your three credit reports. Compare what each one says about the eviction and any unpaid rent, and write down every entry that’s wrong, outdated, or incomplete.
For the credit side, SmartDispute lays out your Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion reports side by side, flags collection accounts with problems such as wrong dates or balances, and drafts suggested disputes for you to review and mail. See how SmartDispute works.
