Renting apartment - US citizen and foreign spouse (CR1 visa)

[pizzapancake 2]

Hi, I'm currently going through the CR1 visa process and my husband is based in the US- he is currently living at home but we intend to get our own apartment once the CR1 visa is finalised and before I officially move to the US. Does anyone have any experience in terms of renting an apartment after the CR1 visa has been approved? My husband has a steady income and we are financially stable and have savings, but I'm a bit worried about having to provide proof/background checks/credit score etc- or would my husband's creditworthiness be enough?

 

Thank you in advance!

[Verrou 1,962]

dont think its immigration issue. he can move wherever he wants, if he lives in USA, i assume he already have and build  credit scores long time ago and he has enough income, there wont be issue at all. this is between him and the landlord

[pizzapancake 2]

2 minutes ago, Misscloud said:

dont think its immigration issue. he can move wherever he wants, if he lives in USA, i assume he already have and build  credit scores long time ago and he has enough income, there wont be issue at all. this is between him and the landlord

yep his credit score and income is decent, I was just worried that the landlord would also ask for proof of the other tenant's (myself) details if I get added onto the lease!

[Verrou 1,962]

shouldnt be a problem at all. if there's issue, just use ur husband name only for the lease. 

there's plenty of other evidence you can use that shows cohibitation with ur partner other than lease.

im not gonna be worried about that

Edited June 6, 2022 by Misscloud

[Crazy Cat 41,845]

21 minutes ago, pizzapancake said:

yep his credit score and income is decent, I was just worried that the landlord would also ask for proof of the other tenant's (myself) details if I get added onto the lease!

They will, likely, require a background check on you as a listed tenant.  That is standard procedure.  

 

14 minutes ago, Misscloud said:

shouldnt be a problem at all. if there's issue, just use ur husband name only for the lease.

My experience has been that both people will have to be on the lease once they are both living there. 

[Crazy Cat 41,845]

Originally,  I rented our apartment before my wife arrived via her CR-1.  Soon after she arrived, I had to put her on the lease.  Fortunately, her Social Security card arrived within 11 days, so our apartment management people were able to easily run a background check on her.  Your miles may vary, but the landlords from whom we have rented required both of us to be listed on the lease as tenants. 

[pizzapancake 2]

6 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

Originally,  I rented our apartment before my wife arrived via her CR-1.  Soon after she arrived, I had to put her on the lease.  Fortunately, her Social Security card arrived within 11 days, so our apartment management people were able to easily run a background check on her.  Your miles may vary, but the landlords from whom we have rented required both of us to be listed on the lease as tenants. 

This is helpful, thank you Crazy Cat! Was your wife only allowed to apply for a Social Security card once she was physically in the US, or can you do so before moving over?

[Crazy Cat 41,845]

1 minute ago, pizzapancake said:

This is helpful, thank you Crazy Cat! Was your wife only allowed to apply for a Social Security card once she was physically in the US, or can you do so before moving over?

She marked the box on the DS-260, so her Social Security card was automatically sent to her after her arrival.

[Verrou 1,962]

26 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

They will, likely, require a background check on you as a listed tenant.  That is standard procedure.  

 

My experience has been that both people will have to be on the lease once they are both living there. 

guess its different depending on the landlord, luckily we never had issue

i never had my name on the lease ( as joint renter) because they charged $200 for per person for background check ( that was like 2019) just too broke to spend extra $200 LOL but there's part on the lease that he put my name on it. ( it's like on page 20) but i never sign anything

Edited June 6, 2022 by Misscloud

[carmel34 3,626]

Most landlords will require both residents to sign the lease, however only one spouse, such as the USC spouse, can be the person financially responsible if you choose to do it that way.  It takes quite a while for a new resident to build a US credit record and USCIS should understand this.

[PeachesMagee 62]

My wife doesn't work, and hasn't since I moved here (long story), so after living with friends for about 2 months, I found a job. After having worked there for a month, we started apartment hunting.

With zero credit in the US, and a spouse with less credit than me (another long story), we found an apartment we both liked.

We both signed the lease, and there were no issues whatsoever. As a matter of fact, I was able to get a mortgage while still on my 10 year GC.

Don't be afraid to find a place you like, and can afford. Your immigration status will have zero impact on getting an apartment with a reputable landlord.

[slavaskii 886]

Even for K1, can confirm this isn’t an issue. When originally signing my lease I informed I’d eventually be adding someone who was moving to the US later on, and they said it was no problem to just add someone on. So long as the USC has a good report and is financially capable I wouldn’t worry; even if they do need to run ‘something,’ most apartment contracts have a built-in guest period anyway and a caring landlord would certainly extend it for you. Good luck!

[pizzapancake 2]

thanks all!

[top_secret 2,421]

On 6/6/2022 at 7:18 AM, pizzapancake said:

yep his credit score and income is decent, I was just worried that the landlord would also ask for proof of the other tenant's (myself) details if I get added onto the lease!

Have him add you as an authorized user on all of his credit cards that have good history and low balances. The more accounts the better.  He can do this now without a social security number and just using his own address.  Most banks will add an authorized user with just a name and birthdate and they report the account to the credit bureaus.  It will make a HUGE difference on your credit score when you arrive.  My wife already had 740+ credit scores the moment she first set foot in the US.

[pizzapancake 2]

46 minutes ago, top_secret said:

Have him add you as an authorized user on all of his credit cards that have good history and low balances. The more accounts the better.  He can do this now without a social security number and just using his own address.  Most banks will add an authorized user with just a name and birthdate and they report the account to the credit bureaus.  It will make a HUGE difference on your credit score when you arrive.  My wife already had 740+ credit scores the moment she first set foot in the US.

@top_secret thank you for this! how early in advance did you do this before your wife arrived? our visa will take a while I expect...