Open any 2025 auto finance report and one number jumps out: a borrower with subprime credit pays about 13.34% APR on a new car, while a top-tier borrower pays 4.88%. That ten-point gap isn't just a percentage-it's a tax on a record you never built.
The math that costs you thousands
In 2025, a borrower with a 501-600 credit score could expect roughly a 13.34% APR on a new-car loan. A top-tier borrower? 4.88%. That's over 10.5 percentage points more, month after month, for the same car (Experian State of the Automotive Finance Market, 2025).
On a $30,000, five-year loan, that difference adds up fast. While the exact extra interest depends on the loan amount and term, spreading 10.5 points across a typical car note locks in thousands of dollars you'll never see again.
A subprime borrower can pay thousands more in interest over the life of a car loan, simply because traditional credit reports ignore reliable rent payments.
Used cars: an even wider gap
If you turn to the used-car lot, the penalty gets steeper. Subprime and deep-subprime rates reached 19% to 21.6% APR in the same 2025 data. That's not a typo-more than one in five dollars goes to interest.
These aren't outlier rates. They're the cost of a credit file that looks thin or invisible to lenders, even when your actual financial behavior is solid.
RentCredit adds your positive, on-time rent history to your credit report. It does not remove or dispute any past negative items, and because only on-time payments are reported, it cannot lower your score. We are not a lender, and we cannot guarantee a specific score increase-credit models vary.
Why your rent isn't telling the truth
Most renters pay on time, every month. That's a powerful signal of reliability. Yet traditional credit reports usually ignore it. Every mortgage check gets filed; every rent check disappears.
The result: millions of responsible people get priced like a risk they've never been. Lenders don't see a thin file as neutral-they see it as unreadable, and they price in a cushion of uncertainty.
Adding the missing piece
RentCredit was built for this exact gap. We add your on-time rent payments as a positive trade line on your credit report. Nothing gets disputed or removed-your rent simply starts counting.
Because only on-time payments are reported, taking part cannot lower your score. It's a straightforward way to help credit models see the real you.
Omar Catlin here. As a licensed broker, I've watched renters get sidelined by a system that treats every mortgage payment as creditworthy but ignores rent checks altogether. That never sat right, so I built RentCredit to make that history count.
Questions people ask
What exactly does RentCredit report?
Only your on-time monthly rent payments. We add a positive trade line to your credit report, without touching any existing information.
Can RentCredit lower my credit score?
No. We only report on-time payments, which cannot negatively impact your score. However, each credit scoring model is different, so we can't guarantee a specific increase.
How do I join?
RentCredit is currently pre-launch. Join the free founding waitlist at our site to be among the first to add your rent history once we go live.
Stop leaving your biggest monthly payment off your credit record
Join the free RentCredit founding waitlist today-no cost, no obligation, just a smarter way to show lenders what you already prove every month.
Get on the free waitlist →RentCredit adds positive on-time rent history only. It is not a credit-repair service and not a lender. Pre-launch; reporting is not yet live.