CFPB Reports Highlight Regulatory Concerns With Tenant Background Checks

On November 15, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued two reports - titled "Tenant Background Checks Market Report" and the "Consumer Snapshot: Tenant Background Checks" - reflecting concerns over incomplete and inaccurate data in tenant screening reports. The reports expand on themes articulated in connection with the CFPB's 2022 list of consumer reporting companies and in a 2021 CFPB bulletin, namely, that the bureau views inaccuracies in tenant screening reports to have the potential to severely harm individuals' financial lives, and it believes that the risks posed by such inaccuracies may be even more elevated as pandemic-related interventions protecting renters expire. Interestingly, the reports were issued just a day after a White House meeting on tenant protections and rent affordability, which was attended by more than 70 tenant leaders and advocates, housing providers, legal advocates, and housing policy experts.