When Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), first announced plans to let lenders use the credit scoring model VantageScore 4.0 for mortgage credit checks on loans delivered to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, he highlighted VantageScore’s claim that it is the first credit scoring model to incorporate rent payment data when it is available in a consumer’s credit file.
“If you’re likely to pay your rent, you’re likely to pay your mortgage,” Pulte wrote on social media in July, adding that “today changes mortgages FOREVER.”
Zillow directly referenced Pulte’s VantageScore move Tuesday in its announcement of a partnership with Esusu to expand the Seattle-based real estate marketplace company’s rent reporting capabilities.
The FHFA announcement “makes rental payment reporting more impactful than ever,” Zillow said in a press release. “These significant changes better incorporate rental payment history into the lending process, which could expand access to the American Dream of homeownership through rent reporting.”
Esusu is a tech platform that reports rent payments to the three major credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Its website states that it helps “renters build credit while maximizing property outcomes for managers and owners.”
The partnership with Zillow, which launches in November, lets renters sign up for rent reporting directly through Zillow’s website. At a cost of $20 per year, the service allows renters — not necessarily those paying rent through Zillow — to have their monthly rent payments reported to the major credit bureaus.
According to a TransUnion report released last month, just 13% of consumers have had their rent payments reported to credit agencies in 2025, up from 11% in 2024.
“Paying rent is often a renter’s biggest and most consistent monthly expense,” stated Michael Sherman, senior vice president of Zillow Rentals. “It makes sense that this payment should help build their credit.”
Added Esusu co-founders and co-CEOs Wemimo Abbey and Samir Goel: “At Esusu, we believe everyone deserves credit for paying their rent on time. By including rent in the credit system, we’re helping to build economic mobility and unlock the American Dream for millions.”
