Do Evictions Show From State to State? | Sapling

Do Evictions Show From State to State?

Written By
Craig Berman
Craig Berman
Feb 27, 2011
2 minute read
House for sale
An eviction usually follows numerous collection attempts. Image Credit: moodboard/moodboard/Getty Images

When they take place through the court system, evictions become a matter of public record. Because evictions usually follow a series of late payments that require the landlord to escalate collection action, an eviction that took place in one state likely will show up when a prospective landlord in another state conducts a background check.

Evidence Hard to Hide

The eviction itself doesn't appear on your credit report except perhaps in the public records area, where judgments against you are noted. As a result, any prospective landlord who just screens candidates by pulling your credit report may miss it. However, many landlords conduct more extensive background checks on prospective tenants or outsource such activities to third parties that conduct a records search as part of their process. In addition to the civil judgment record, evidence of serious delinquency would appear if the account for the payments owed was referred to a collection agency.

Filings and Judgments

Even if you never had to appear in court, or if you fought eviction proceedings and won, the filing of a lawsuit seeking eviction remains a matter of public record that's available everywhere, not just to landlords in the state where the action took place. If you were evicted or threatened with eviction for inadequate reasons or in violation of your state's laws, you'll still have to explain what happened. Confirm that any judgments against you have been paid. Many landlords won't rent to tenants with unpaid judgments related to an eviction.

Craig Berman

Craig Berman has been on the reality TV beat since Carrie Underwood was an unknown country singer from Oklahoma, and writing about sports and business for even longer. He writes about "American Idol" for Today.com, and his work has…

Sapling Logo

We demystify personal finance and make financial adulting easier. From student loans to credit and investing, all the money questions you were ever afraid to ask are right here.

Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2026 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.