What Credit Score Do You Need to Rent an Apartment in Texas?

Last reviewed October 22, 2026. This is general information about renting in Texas, not legal or financial advice. Laws, prices, and screening rules change, so confirm details with each community and talk with an attorney about your own situation.

If you're asking what credit score do you need to rent an apartment in Texas, the honest answer is that there isn't one number. No Texas law sets a minimum score. Each landlord picks its own rules, and two communities on the same street can read the same credit report very differently.

Most search results give you a score range and call it the answer. We see renters with very different scores end up in very different places, so we don't treat any range as a rule. We work with every credit score, including under 500, and with first-time renters who have no credit history.

What actually decides your application is the community's written criteria, your income, and what's on your screening reports.

Here's how credit really works on a Texas apartment application, what the law says you're owed, and what you can do before you pay another fee.

There's no minimum credit score in Texas law

Texas doesn't set a credit score that landlords have to use, and neither does federal law. The Texas Property Code does something more useful for you. It makes landlords tell you their rules up front.

So the "minimum" you read about online is just a number one landlord, one screening company, or one blog picked. Your score only matters against the rules of the community you apply to.

A score isn't a pass or fail on its own. It's one input the community weighs next to your income, rental history, and background.

This holds in Austin, Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio alike. State law applies everywhere in Texas, and communities in every metro set their own criteria.

How landlords and screening companies use your credit

Most apartment communities don't read your credit report line by line. They pay a tenant screening company to pull your file and run it through software. The software checks it against the rules the community set, then sends back a result like approve, approve with conditions, or deny.

That's why the score alone tells you so little. The same report can pass at one property and fail at the next, because each one set up its software differently. Our guide to screening software walks through how those systems read a file.

Here's what the screening usually looks at on the credit side.

What's on Your File	What It Tells the Community
Credit score	A quick summary of your payment history. Each community decides how much it counts.
Money owed to a past landlord	Whether you left an apartment owing a balance. In the files we see, this often matters more than the score.
Monthly debt payments	How much of your income already goes to loans and cards. Some communities subtract this before checking income.
Recent late payments	Whether past problems are old or still happening.

Ask for the written selection criteria first

Texas Property Code Section 92.3515 is the most useful law most renters have never heard of. When a landlord gives you a rental application, it has to make printed notice of its tenant selection criteria available to you. That notice covers the grounds for denial, including your:

• Criminal history
• Previous rental history
• Current income
• Credit history
• Failure to give accurate or complete information on the application

You sign an acknowledgment that you had the chance to review it. That acknowledgment warns you that if you don't meet the criteria, your application may be rejected and your application fee won't be refunded.

If a landlord rejects you and never made the selection criteria available, Texas law (opens in new tab) says the landlord has to return your application fee and any application deposit.

So read the criteria before you pay. If the credit section is vague, ask the leasing office what it means for a file like yours. A short phone call can save the fee. Here's how to stop wasting money on application fees.

How income, deposits, and guarantors offset credit

Credit is rarely the only thing that decides a Texas application. Communities often let other parts of your file make up for a lower score.

Income

Many communities want your monthly income before taxes to be about three times the rent. For a $1,400 a month apartment, that's $4,200 a month. Clearing the income bar with room to spare gives the community more reason to look past a credit problem.

If you're short, see how renters meet the 3x rent rule with a second income or a guarantor.

A bigger deposit

Some communities approve a weaker credit file with conditions, like a larger security deposit. The deposit lowers the community's risk, so it can stand in for some of what your credit doesn't show. Get the amount in writing before you agree.

A guarantor or co-signer

A guarantor signs the lease as a backup and is on the hook if the rent isn't paid. It might be a family member with strong credit and income, or a paid guarantor company. Compare guarantors and higher deposits to see which fits you.

We work with every credit score

There's no score too low for us to work with. Our form asks roughly where your score is, so we know where to start. If you're not sure, that's an answer too.

Here's what we work with in each range and what usually helps. It describes how we approach your search, not what any one community will decide.

Your Score	What We Work With	What Usually Helps
Under 500	Yes. We look for communities where a person reviews files and other parts of your file can carry weight.	Proof of 3x income, paid off landlord debt, a guarantor service or co-signer, an extra deposit
500 to 529	Yes. We focus on communities where a person can review your file and conditions are possible.	Proof of 3x income, an extra deposit, a guarantor service or co-signer, receipts for paid debts
530 to 579	Yes. We focus on communities whose written criteria leave room for conditions.	Steady income proof, an extra deposit, a guarantor service, a short letter about past problems
580 to 619	Yes. We match your file to communities whose criteria and conditions fit it.	Proof of 3x income, solid rental history, an extra deposit or co-signer if asked
620 to 679	Yes. We check what else might trip the software, like debt or rental history.	Clean rental history, proof of 3x income, low monthly debt
680 or higher	Yes. We still check the rest of your file, since the score isn't the only screen.	Proof of 3x income, rental history, a clean tenant screening report
First-time renter or no credit	Yes. We look for communities that weigh income and rental history when there's no score.	Bank statements, proof of 3x income, a co-signer or guarantor service, an extra deposit

Every community still runs its own screening and makes the final call. Our job is to point you to the ones whose written rules fit your file.

If you're denied: what federal law says you're owed

When a landlord turns you down based in whole or in part on a consumer report, the Fair Credit Reporting Act gives you rights. Under 15 U.S.C. 1681m (opens in new tab), the landlord has to give you:

• Notice of the denial: Oral, written, or electronic.
• The credit score it used: If it used one, along with information about that score.
• Who supplied the report: The screening company's name, address, and phone number.
• Who made the call: A statement that the screening company didn't make the decision and can't tell you the specific reasons.
• Your right to a free copy: You can get your report free from that company if you ask within 60 days.
• Your right to dispute: You can challenge anything inaccurate or incomplete.

Keep that notice. It tells you exactly which company to contact, so you're not guessing which report caused the problem.

Under federal law, once a screening company gets your dispute, it generally has 30 days to look into it. Anything it finds inaccurate or can't verify has to be fixed or removed.

What to do before you apply

A little prep before you tour saves money and surprises. Here's the order we suggest.

1. Pull your credit reports. You can get your Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion reports free once a week at AnnualCreditReport.com (opens in new tab). Look for accounts that aren't yours and balances that are wrong.
2. Pull your tenant screening files. These are separate from your credit reports and can include eviction filings and rental history. Our tenant record guide covers the big screening companies and how to ask for your file.
3. Dispute errors in writing. Send proof like paid receipts, settlement letters, or court records. Fix it at the source instead of explaining it at the leasing desk.
4. Get your proof ready. Recent pay stubs or bank statements, a receipt for any paid landlord debt, and a short letter about a past problem all help when a person reviews your file.
5. Read the criteria before you pay. Then apply only where your file fits the written rules.

How we help

We're licensed Texas apartment locators, and our service is free to you. Communities pay our fee.

When you fill out your profile, pick the range closest to your credit score (or "Not sure"), and tell us about your income and anything else on your record. We compare that against the screening rules of communities in the area you want. Then we send you a custom apartment list within 24 to 48 hours, so you apply where your file fits instead of applying blind.

We work across Austin, Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, and the cities around them. See every area we serve, or tell us your situation to get started. It's free, with zero judgment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a minimum credit score to rent an apartment in Texas?

No. No Texas or federal law sets one. Each landlord sets its own criteria, and the Texas Property Code says the landlord has to make those criteria available when you get an application.

Do you work with credit scores under 500?

Yes. We work with every credit score, including under 500, and with first-time renters who have no credit history. Our form asks roughly where your score is so we know where to start. Each community still runs its own screening and makes the final call.

Can a Texas landlord deny me for bad credit?

Yes. Credit history is one of the grounds Texas law lists for the selection criteria notice. If the denial is based on a consumer report, federal law says the landlord has to tell you which company supplied it and that you can get a free copy and dispute errors.

Do I get my application fee back if I am denied?

Usually not, if the landlord made its selection criteria available to you. If the landlord rejects you and never made the criteria available, Texas law says it has to return your application fee and any application deposit.

How do I see what is on my reports before I apply?

Get your free credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com, where each of the three big bureaus offers one every week. Ask the tenant screening companies for your file too. If you were denied in the last 60 days, the company named in your denial notice owes you a free copy.