Minnesota Bill Would Give Credit Nod to Renters for On Time Payments

(Adobe Stock via Minnesota News Connection)

(By Mike Moen. Minnesota News Connection ) – Paying your credit card, car loan or mortgage on time helps your credit score shine and supporters of a proposed Minnesota law want the same perk for renters with a good payment record.

They said it would open more financial doors for marginalized residents. A bill up for consideration in the Legislature requires a landlord overseeing at least 10 units to give tenants the option to have their on-time housing payments reported to credit rating agencies.

Samuel Benda, policy entrepreneur fellow at the African American Leadership Forum, testified in support of the measure, saying rent is the largest monthly expense for more than a million Minnesotans but it does little to help them build wealth.

“This has created the ‘credit-invisible class’ in which low-income families and communities of color are overrepresented,” Benda explained.