Can a landlord do a credit check?

You can be. The privacy rules on credit checks do not depend on the type of home: BC's privacy commissioner says its law covers anyone offering to rent any property, and Alberta's covers anyone renting out all or part of their property for profit. Either way, the landlord needs your consent before it checks your credit.

It is a request from the landlord to a credit reporting agency for your credit report, made with your consent. The landlord uses it as one way to judge whether you are likely to pay the rent. In Ontario, a landlord that asks about your income must consider it together with your rental history, credit references and credit check.

To judge whether you are likely to pay the rent on time. The Manitoba Human Rights Commission says landlords are entitled to screen applicants for ability to pay, income stability and suitability, as long as they assess each person individually. Alberta's privacy commissioner says a landlord can request a credit report if it has concerns about non-payment of rent.

In general terms, a credit report shows how you have handled credit, such as loans and credit cards, and whether you have paid on time. The federal privacy commissioner says extra details on an application, like your employer, income and expenses, may let the landlord get a more detailed report. To see what a landlord would see, get your own report from a credit reporting agency before you apply.

A credit reporting agency. The Ontario Human Rights Commission gives Equifax Canada as an example. The landlord passes your details to the agency with your consent, and the federal privacy commissioner says it needs at least your name, address and date of birth to do so.

Not in British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Prince Edward Island, where the tenancy Acts ban charging for investigating an applicant's suitability, and not in Ontario or Nova Scotia, which ban any fee or money for applying. Alberta does not ban application fees, though you can choose not to apply. We found no rule that names them in New Brunswick or Newfoundland and Labrador. Be wary of anyone who asks you to pay for a credit check before you have seen the place; see how to spot rental scams.

Yes, it is a standard part of screening. Ontario's human rights regulation lets a landlord ask for permission to run one, New Brunswick's government says landlords may request one, and Nova Scotia's renting guide says landlords can run credit and background checks. What is not normal is running the check without your consent.

Lead with what you do have: proof of steady income, references from past landlords or an employer, and a guarantor or co-signer if the landlord wants extra security. If a landlord turns you down only because you have no credit history, ask your province's human rights commission whether that was fair; the commissions in Ontario, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador have said a lack of credit history should not count against you. See how to rent an apartment with bad credit for more steps.

During screening, after you apply and before a lease is offered. BC's privacy commissioner says the check should be run only near the end of selection, on the few applicants a landlord is considering, even if consent is asked for on the application form. Wherever you are, the landlord needs your consent before it runs the check.

Your consent and, at a minimum, your name, address and date of birth, according to the federal privacy commissioner. It does not need your Social Insurance Number, and if you are asked for it for a credit check, the commissioner suggests explaining that and offering other identification. Nova Scotia's renting guide says landlords cannot force tenants to give their SIN.

We found no pass mark in the rules covered here; each landlord decides how to weigh your report alongside your income, references and rental history. In Ontario, a landlord that asks about your income must consider it together with your credit and rental history. In Newfoundland and Labrador, the Human Rights Commission says a landlord may ask for a co-signer if you have a bad credit rating. Checking your own report first means nothing on it will surprise you.

SQRFT's plain-language summary of the rules we reviewed is three things: whether you can pay the rent, how you have rented before, and who you are. In practice that means proof of income or employment, references from past landlords and, with your consent, a credit report. Ontario's Human Rights Code regulation names credit references, rental history and a credit check, and New Brunswick's government says a landlord may ask for your contact information, employment information and references and may request a credit check. British Columbia's privacy commissioner says it is also reasonable for a landlord to ask whether you have ever been evicted.

Sharing your details with a third party needs your consent, and the federal privacy commissioner advises against using social media for background checks. A criminal record check is a separate question, covered in can a landlord ask about a criminal record.

Yes, a landlord can ask for your consent to get one, and in Alberta the commissioner says you may bring your own report instead. Alberta's commissioner says a landlord can request a credit report if it has concerns about non-payment of rent. In British Columbia the consent can be requested on the application form, but the check should wait until the few applicants the landlord is seriously considering. In the other provinces covered here the federal privacy law applies and the landlord needs your consent.

SQRFT advice, not law: if you would rather not give your details to a stranger, offer your own report together with pay stubs and references.