Tenant screening agencies can only report unpaid bills and evictions for 7 years. Bankruptcies are reported for 10 years. Criminal convictions can be reported forever, but arrests and other police records can only be reported for 7 years.
Evictions (sometimes called unlawful detainers or UDs) are reported for 7 years by screening agencies. An eviction case shows up on your tenant screening report when it is filed. It shows up even if you win the case, settle the case, move, or pay all of the rent you owe.
Note: Evictions can show up on public court records for much longer than 7 years.
If the Court expunges your eviction case, then tenant screening agencies can’t report it. When a case is expunged the Court erases the public record of it.
To find out how to ask the Court for an expungement, and how to tell screening agencies when a case is expunged, see our fact sheet Expunging an Eviction Case.