13,500+
ID document types
Driver's licences, passports, permanent resident cards and study permits, verified directly rather than through credit-file questions.
For landlords, property managers and leasing agents
Tenant screening and credit checks, back before the next showing
An Equifax credit report, identity verification and references from previous landlords, completed by the applicant from their phone. Credit results usually arrive in minutes, with consent on file.
Pay per check, no subscription, no minimum.
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100% Canadian owned and operated
Data hosted in Canada
- Minutes
- Equifax credit report, usually
- A+ to F
- Plain-language credit grade
- $9
- Per applicant for references, any number of referees
- $0
- No subscription, no minimum
Credit report · EquifaxUnit 4B
A. Novak · Grade B+ · 720
No collections, no bankruptcies, no legal items on file. Returned 6:12 p.m.
Integrity alert
"Previous landlord" submitted from the applicant's device
Review before relying on this reference. Your decision is logged.
Identity verified
Government ID matched to a live selfie
The applicant is the person on the application. No photocopy of their licence in your files.
What you can check
The checks a landlord may ask for, and how to run each one
In Ontario, a Human Rights Code regulation spells out what landlords may request when choosing a tenant. Credit checks, credit references and rental history are all permitted. Income information is permitted only alongside them, never on its own.
| Check | What it tells you | Ontario rule | On Credibled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit check | How the applicant has handled credit: debts, late payments, collections, bankruptcies | Permitted with the applicant's authorization | Equifax report, graded A+ to F, usually in minutes |
| Rental history and references | How they paid rent and left their last place, in a previous landlord's words | Permitted | Reference checks, $9 per applicant, with integrity alerts |
| Income and employment | Whether they work where they say they work | Only together with a credit check, credit references or rental history | Employment verification, confirmed with the employer |
| Identity | That the applicant is the person named on the application | Collect only what you need; you likely don't need a copy of the ID | ID verification with a liveness check |
| Guarantor | Whether a co-signer can stand behind the rent | A landlord may require a guarantee for the rent | The same credit check, run on the guarantor with their own consent |
Ontario rules from O. Reg. 290/98 under the Human Rights Code. Identity guidance from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Other provinces have their own privacy and human rights rules. This is general information, not legal advice.
Tenant credit check
A credit report you can read before the applicant leaves the showing
A raw credit file is written for lenders. Credibled puts a letter grade and score at the top, flags the risks that matter, and keeps the full detail underneath.
- Grade, score and default rate. Eight published bands from A+ to F, so you know what a B+ actually means.
- Collections, bankruptcies and judgments. Called out in plain language, or marked None Found.
- Debt summary and tradelines. Balances, credit used and late payments at 30, 60 and 90 days.
- Addresses on file. As reported to the bureau, which sometimes surfaces a discrepancy with the application.
Credit check · Equifax
Cleared
B+
720
Default rate 5% in this band
- Collections
- None found
- Bankruptcies
- None found
- Legal items on file
- None found
Rental history
Is the "previous landlord" really a previous landlord?
A reference from a friend posing as a past landlord is one of the oldest tricks in renting, and a phone call won't catch it. Credibled flags a reference when the referee submits from the same IP address or device as the applicant, or from a personal email instead of a work or property-management address.
The alert doesn't reject anyone, because there are innocent explanations. You review it, you decide, and your decision is logged.
$9per applicant, however many referees. Reminders go out automatically for up to 10 days.
More on reference checks
Rental references · 2 referees
Complete
A. Novak
- Property manager · Lakeview Residences
- Previous landlord · Private
Integrity alert
The previous landlord submitted from the same device as the applicant, using a personal email address. Review before relying on this reference.
Decision logged to the audit trail with reviewer and timestamp.
Rental fraud
Make sure the person signing the lease is the person you screened
A clean credit report means nothing if it belongs to someone else. Credibled verifies the applicant's government ID with a live selfie before anything else runs.
Liveness
A real person, not a photo
The selfie is matched to the ID photo, so a stolen card on its own won't pass.
No copies
Less sensitive data in your files
The Privacy Commissioner says landlords likely don't need to keep copies of ID. The result is on your dashboard instead of a scan in your inbox.
Newcomers and students
When the applicant has no Canadian credit file
A newcomer, an international student or a young first-time renter may have no Canadian credit history at all. That's not the same as bad credit, and a thin file shouldn't decide the application on its own.
Build the picture from what they do have. In Ontario, a landlord may also require a guarantee for the rent.
Identity
ID + selfie
Works with a study permit or a new permanent resident card. No Canadian credit history needed.
History and income
References
Previous landlords, in Canada or abroad, plus employment verification with their current employer.
Backstop
Guarantor
Run the same credit check on a guarantor, with the guarantor's own consent.
Screen fairly
Six things not to do when screening tenants
Screening that ignores privacy or human rights law can cost more than a bad tenancy. These come straight from Canadian regulators.
Don't require a SIN
You can ask, but the applicant can say no. A basic credit check needs only name, address and date of birth.
Don't run checks without consent
Credit checks, references and background checks all need the applicant's consent. Credibled collects it in the flow and keeps it on file.
Don't screen on income alone
In Ontario, income information can only be considered together with credit checks, credit references or rental history.
Don't refuse on a protected ground
Including family status, disability, age, place of origin or the receipt of public assistance, among others.
Don't screen on social media
The federal Privacy Commissioner advises against it, and BC's says it is almost never authorized.
Don't keep it forever
Keep screening information only as long as you need it, and protect it while you do.
Sources: Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, O. Reg. 290/98, McCarthy Tétrault summary of BC guidance. General information, not legal advice.
Property managers and leasing agents
Screening for owners, with a file you can hand over
If you screen applicants on behalf of property owners, the work is the same every time and the owner wants to see it. Credibled is built for that.
Results the owner can read
Credit results lead with a plain-language grade, and completed references export to PDF, ready to forward with your recommendation.
One account, every unit
Leasing agents across buildings order from the same account. Duplicate detection stops two of them paying to screen the same applicant within 30 days.
Consent and decisions on file
Every consent, result and integrity-alert decision is logged with who did what and when, in case a decision is ever questioned.
Pay per check
Priced for vacancies, not subscriptions
A landlord with two units might screen applicants twice a year. A property manager might screen twenty in a week. Pay per check either way, with no subscription, no minimum and no contract.
Your exact prices appear during sign-up, before you create the account. Creating an account is free, with no credit card.
Security
Applicant data, kept in Canada
PIPEDA compliant, hosted on AWS in Canada, encrypted in transit and at rest, with audit trails and role-based access on every account.
Straight answers
What we won't do, so you know upfront
We don't push criminal record checks on tenants.
BC's Privacy Commissioner says they are neither necessary nor reasonable in most rental situations. Run one only where you have a genuine, specific need.
We don't run a "bad tenant list".
Your screening results stay in your account. They are not shared with other landlords or other Credibled clients.
We don't choose your tenant.
We report what we find. The decision is yours, made within human rights and tenancy law.
FAQ
Tenant screening questions landlords ask
01The rules
Can a landlord run a credit check on a tenant in Canada?
Yes, with the applicant's consent. In Ontario, the Human Rights Code regulation on tenant selection expressly allows landlords to request authorization for a credit check, along with credit references and rental history. Most other provinces also require consent before a credit report is used.
Can I ask a tenant for their SIN?
You can ask, but you can't require it, and the applicant can decline. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada notes that a basic credit check needs only name, address and date of birth.
Can I use income to screen tenants in Ontario?
Only together with other information. A landlord may request income information only if they also request credit references, rental history or a credit check, and must consider it together with that information. If the applicant provides only income information, the landlord may then consider it alone.
Can I run a criminal record check on a tenant?
Rarely. BC's Privacy Commissioner says criminal record checks on tenants will be neither necessary nor reasonable in most situations, and landlords there cannot require consent to one unless the information is genuinely necessary. Check the rules in your province before asking for one.
Can I check a guarantor?
Yes, with the guarantor's own consent. In Ontario, a landlord may require a prospective tenant to obtain a guarantee for the rent, and the guarantor can complete the same credit check from their phone.
02Running a check
What do I need from the applicant?
Just their email address. They receive a secure link, give consent, confirm their details, verify their ID with a selfie and add referees if you asked for references. It works on any phone, with no app and no account.
How long does tenant screening take?
Credit reports and identity verification usually come back within minutes of the applicant completing their part. References and employment verification depend on how quickly the referee or employer replies.
What does the tenant credit report show?
A letter grade from A+ to F, the score and the default rate for that band, plus a debt summary, tradelines, collections, bankruptcies, judgments and other public records, and the addresses and employment reported to the bureau.
What if the applicant has no Canadian credit history?
Verify their identity with a government ID and selfie, which doesn't depend on a credit file, then rely on references from previous landlords and employment verification. In Ontario you may also require a guarantee for the rent.
03Cost and accounts
How much does tenant screening cost?
Pay per check, with no subscription and no minimum. Reference checks are $9 per applicant, however many referees. Every other price is shown during sign-up, before you create an account.
Can several leasing agents share one account?
Yes. Everyone orders from the same account and invoice, with role-based access, and duplicate detection stops two agents paying to screen the same applicant within 30 days.
Where is applicant data stored?
In Canada, on AWS. Credibled is PIPEDA compliant, encrypted in transit and at rest, and keeps an audit trail of who accessed each result and when.
Fill the unit with someone you've actually checked.
Create a free account and run your first tenant screening today. Pay per check, no subscription.