# How Long Does a Broken Lease Stay on Your Record?

> How long does a broken lease stay on your record? Find where it shows up, like a landlord reference, a collection or a screening report, and check the dates.

URL: https://nocreditcheckapartment.com/guide/how-long-does-broken-lease-stay-on-record/

How long a broken lease stays on your record depends on which record you mean. It could be a reference from your old landlord, a collection account or a tenant screening report. Find the dates and who reported it before you ask for a correction or start applying.

## The short answer

Up to about seven years. That’s how long a tenant screening report can list it, and how long a collection account for the balance can stay on your credit report. Paying it off doesn’t erase it, but it helps long before then.

We’re the No Credit Check Apartment Team, a licensed real estate team brokered by Spirit Real Estate Group, LLC (TREC #562021). Between us we have more than 20 years in real estate, working with property managers across Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Austin and San Antonio. We point renters with credit, eviction and record problems to communities whose criteria may fit them, and each property makes its own rental decision.

## What that means for you

Age matters as much as whether it still shows. From what we see, many communities look hardest at the last two or three years. A break older than that opens up far more communities than one from last year.

Paying the balance doesn't erase the record, but it changes how communities read it. Communities that turn down an unpaid break will often consider a paid one that comes with a zero balance letter.

## How Texas communities handle it

Texas property managers screen through a handful of companies, including TransUnion SmartMove, RealPage LeasingDesk, and AppFolio. Some check rent payment data from Experian RentBureau, and old apartment balances often show up through collection agencies like NCAC. Each one pulls up different information, and each management company reads it differently.

A denied application usually costs $50 to $75, and those fees stack up fast when you apply without knowing how a property screens.

For more on renting with a broken lease, see our page on [broken lease](/broken-lease/) or the related guides below.

## What to do next

Don't know where to apply, or tired of paying fees just to get turned down? Don’t guess. Send us your situation and we’ll point you to Texas communities worth a look. It’s free to you; communities pay our referral fee out of their advertising budgets.

Related reading: [broken lease](/broken-lease/) · [paid vs. unpaid broken leases](/guide/paid-vs-unpaid-broken-lease/)

## FAQ

Does a broken lease ever go away? + 

Eventually. Screening companies can report it for up to seven years. Paying the balance helps long before that.

Is an older broken lease easier to rent with? + 

Usually. Once the break is two or three years old, more communities will look at you.

Does paying it off remove it? + 

No. It stays on the record, but many communities go easier on a paid balance, more so with a zero balance letter in hand.

## Related guides

[### Paid vs. Unpaid Broken Lease: How Managers Treat Them

Whether you paid it is one of the biggest things managers look at. Screening tells them apart, and paying in full or settling helps.](/guide/paid-vs-unpaid-broken-lease/)[### What to Expect Renting With a Broken Lease on Your Record

Renting with a broken lease? Properties that take one often add conditions or a risk fee. Here are the documents to bring.](/guide/what-to-expect-renting-with-broken-lease/)[### How to Get a Zero Balance Letter for a Broken Lease

A zero balance or paid in full letter shows the property the old debt is settled. Ask your old community or the collection agency for one, and hand it in with your application.](/guide/zero-balance-documentation-broken-lease/)

## Want us to look at your situation?

Send us your screening issue and target city. We typically get back to you the same day to go over your form, and your community list usually takes 24 to 48 weekday hours. Weekend requests most likely hear from us Monday. Free.

 [Start Your Free Search](/find-apartments/)

## Put this advice into practice

- [Organize your rental history](/calculators/rental-history-timeline/)
- [Prepare your application checklist](/calculators/application-readiness-checklist/)
- [See renter resources](/renter-resources/)