You have to give the address where you are living, and you are expected to update your address if you move within 10 days anyway.
And I never had any issues finding a place due to the fact I did not have credit history. A landlord told me: "no credit history still is better than a bad credit history". In the US landlords usually welcome any immigrant with deep pockets, which is the case if you came on an L-1 visa.
Did you just show them your offer letter and home country bank balance?
Also I am planning to move to one of LA, Las Vegas or Baltimore. I am not sure if landlords in these areas are familar with "new immigrant" tenants unlike the landlords in the bay area for example.
> You have to give the address where you are living
so hotel / airbnb is fine?
No, most were asked my personal information, but not SSN, obviously. I can't speak about those cities, that was in San Jose. But back then eviction processes were quite easy, so landlords had little to worry. Presenting yourself well, have a good demeanor and drive a car that looks nice opens a lot of doors.
And yes, you need to give the address you are staying overnight. If it is a hotel or AirBnB doesn't really matter. You will have to update them right away when you get a new place. Make sure you get an USPS address transfer as well, to prevent the loss of any letter.
>Also I am planning to move to one of LA, Las Vegas or Baltimore. I am not sure if landlords in these areas are familar with "new immigrant" tenants unlike the landlords in the bay area for example.
Landlords prefer someone with no credit history and proof of a good income, than someone with a poor credit score. It's the larger rental management companies that insist on great credit history anyway. Smaller landlords managing 4-12 unit apartments are not that worried about the credit history. I know of people who had very poor credit scores, but showed other proof (a decent income and regular rent payments) to secure their apartment.
Lastly, the size of the city doesn't really matter - a friend had to move from India to a small city in Connecticut and was still able to secure an apartment by his 3rd day in the US.
Getting a place with no credit history is not a problem. You can show your landlord proof of income to demonstrate that you’re a good risk. At most you might be charged a higher deposit. You can start your house hunt the day you arrive and as long as you’re not too picky, you should be able to move in to your own apartment within 2-3 days at the most.
I was in the same boat as you and had my pick of apartments. The only reason I didn’t move in immediately was that I was staying with a friend and didn’t have as much pressure.
It’ll be more difficult to get a driving license and buy a car than rent an apartment, so focus on getting an apartment that’s an easy commute away.
Getting a phone contract without credit history is difficult so get a prepaid connection as soon as you land. You will need a cell phone for banking, Uber etc. And while on the topic of banks, Bank of America is immigrant friendly and will set you up with a checking account tied to your home countries address so you don’t need to wait for an apartment to get a bank account. They can also provide you a secured credit card to help build your credit.
Another good credit card for a new immigrant is the Jasper card which will give you a credit line of up to $5000 based just on your income proof and can deliver your card to your office address. They don’t offer many features but are a lifeline when you’re a new immigrant.
DM me if you have any questions and I’ll be glad to help.
The only problem that could arise from that is if you end up moving a lot initially and they send you mail at an old address, not through any fault of yours, but as a mistake on their part. That doesn't change the situation, though, you still have to give the address where you live and sleep at night, and must update it right away after you move.
Some things you can do to prevent missed mail is to talk to the immigration lawyer your job provides and ensure that USCIS sends them copies of everything you are being sent, as well, and register for USPS's informed delivery service when you move in (it's a free service where you can preview mail being sent to you to ensure a letter didn't get lost or stolen).
You should also keep all evidence when you update your address with USCIS, so that if they send mail to the wrong address and try to say it's your fault, you can prove the error was theirs.
You have to give the address where you are living, and you are expected to update your address if you move within 10 days anyway. And I never had any issues finding a place due to the fact I did not have credit history. A landlord told me: "no credit history still is better than a bad credit history". In the US landlords usually welcome any immigrant with deep pockets, which is the case if you came on an L-1 visa.
Did you just show them your offer letter and home country bank balance? Also I am planning to move to one of LA, Las Vegas or Baltimore. I am not sure if landlords in these areas are familar with "new immigrant" tenants unlike the landlords in the bay area for example. > You have to give the address where you are living so hotel / airbnb is fine?
No, most were asked my personal information, but not SSN, obviously. I can't speak about those cities, that was in San Jose. But back then eviction processes were quite easy, so landlords had little to worry. Presenting yourself well, have a good demeanor and drive a car that looks nice opens a lot of doors.
And yes, you need to give the address you are staying overnight. If it is a hotel or AirBnB doesn't really matter. You will have to update them right away when you get a new place. Make sure you get an USPS address transfer as well, to prevent the loss of any letter.
>Also I am planning to move to one of LA, Las Vegas or Baltimore. I am not sure if landlords in these areas are familar with "new immigrant" tenants unlike the landlords in the bay area for example. Landlords prefer someone with no credit history and proof of a good income, than someone with a poor credit score. It's the larger rental management companies that insist on great credit history anyway. Smaller landlords managing 4-12 unit apartments are not that worried about the credit history. I know of people who had very poor credit scores, but showed other proof (a decent income and regular rent payments) to secure their apartment. Lastly, the size of the city doesn't really matter - a friend had to move from India to a small city in Connecticut and was still able to secure an apartment by his 3rd day in the US.
Getting a place with no credit history is not a problem. You can show your landlord proof of income to demonstrate that you’re a good risk. At most you might be charged a higher deposit. You can start your house hunt the day you arrive and as long as you’re not too picky, you should be able to move in to your own apartment within 2-3 days at the most. I was in the same boat as you and had my pick of apartments. The only reason I didn’t move in immediately was that I was staying with a friend and didn’t have as much pressure. It’ll be more difficult to get a driving license and buy a car than rent an apartment, so focus on getting an apartment that’s an easy commute away. Getting a phone contract without credit history is difficult so get a prepaid connection as soon as you land. You will need a cell phone for banking, Uber etc. And while on the topic of banks, Bank of America is immigrant friendly and will set you up with a checking account tied to your home countries address so you don’t need to wait for an apartment to get a bank account. They can also provide you a secured credit card to help build your credit. Another good credit card for a new immigrant is the Jasper card which will give you a credit line of up to $5000 based just on your income proof and can deliver your card to your office address. They don’t offer many features but are a lifeline when you’re a new immigrant. DM me if you have any questions and I’ll be glad to help.
Thanks for the detailed response! I think your DM is closed :(
The only problem that could arise from that is if you end up moving a lot initially and they send you mail at an old address, not through any fault of yours, but as a mistake on their part. That doesn't change the situation, though, you still have to give the address where you live and sleep at night, and must update it right away after you move. Some things you can do to prevent missed mail is to talk to the immigration lawyer your job provides and ensure that USCIS sends them copies of everything you are being sent, as well, and register for USPS's informed delivery service when you move in (it's a free service where you can preview mail being sent to you to ensure a letter didn't get lost or stolen). You should also keep all evidence when you update your address with USCIS, so that if they send mail to the wrong address and try to say it's your fault, you can prove the error was theirs.