Moving to Miami without a US guarantor? A company can sign for you — for about one month’s rent (2026)

Moving to Miami: guarantor services for international students — lease, passport and keys, cost of living in Miami guide

Short answer: Moving to Miami as an international student, the literal question — “International students and guarantor services in Miami: how they work” — has a one-line answer: a guarantor company signs as your financial backup so a landlord will approve you without a US guarantor, US credit or a Social Security number, and it charges you roughly one month’s rent, once, per lease for doing it. On a $1,250 shared room near FIU that is about $1,225–$1,375 with the best-known service for non-US renters; on a $1,823 one-bedroom in Sweetwater it is about $1,787–$2,005. The fee is not refundable if you simply change your mind, it renews with every new lease, and — the part students learn last — no landlord has to accept it. Ask the building which companies it takes before you pay anyone. That sequence, not the brand, is what protects your cost of living in Miami in year one.

Updated: October 12, 2026.

¿Prefieres leer en español? Lee esta guía en español

Moving to Miami: why landlords ask international students for a guarantor

A guarantor is a backup payer: someone who does not live in the apartment but promises to pay if you do not. Landlords ask for one when an application fails their standard screen — and a new international student’s file fails it by design. The usual tenant bar is annual income around 40 times the monthly rent with a credit score around 600 or higher. A personal guarantor is held to roughly double that: income around 80 times the monthly rent and credit around 700. On a $1,823 Sweetwater one-bedroom, a personal guarantor would need to show about $145,840 a year — and most Miami landlords also want that person to be US-based, because a guarantor abroad is hard to collect from. That is the gap guarantor companies sell into. Note the difference that matters on paper: a guarantor pays only if you default, while a co-signer signs the lease itself and owes rent from day one. In the best neighborhoods in Miami for students — Sweetwater and Fontainebleau near FIU, Coral Gables and South Miami near UM, downtown near Miami Dade College — the screening desks all run some version of this same math.

Moving to Miami: what the three guarantor services actually charge in 2026

Three names cover most of the US market. Their published terms, applied to two real Miami budgets (author arithmetic from the published ranges and the Miami rents cited at the end of this page):

Service How it works Published fee On a $1,250/mo shared room On a $1,823/mo 1BR
Insurent Institutional lease guaranty; you can pre-qualify before you hunt Non-US renters without US credit: ~98–110% of one month’s rent for a 1-year lease, per lease $1,225–$1,375 $1,787–$2,005
TheGuarantors Acts as your guarantor under an insurance-backed bond Personalized: generally ~40% of one month’s rent to slightly over a full month, 1-year lease ~$500–$1,375 ~$730–$2,005
Leap Rent Guaranty policy — only at properties partnered with Leap; student housing may offer its monthly Guarantor Waiver instead ~4.5–8% of annual rent, one-time, per lease $675–$1,200 $984–$1,750

Three rules hide inside those numbers. First, the fee is per lease, not per person — three roommates on one lease pay one fee and split it, which is why a shared apartment is the cheapest way to use a guarantor service. Second, longer leases cost more: at Insurent, a 16-month guaranty runs about 23% more than a 12-month one, an 18-month about 39% more, and a two-year about 85% more — so do not sign a longer lease than your program needs just to “lock the price.” Third, Leap’s student Guarantor Waiver flips the model: at participating student buildings you pay a monthly fee billed by the property and are approved without a parental guarantor at all. If your building offers it, compare the monthly total over your lease against a one-time fee before choosing.

How you qualify without US credit: the Responsible Party route

Here is the mechanism most international students actually use, and it is more forgiving than the landlord’s own screen. With Insurent, a student who does not personally meet the direct tests — annual income of at least 27.5 times the monthly rent, or liquid assets of at least 50 times the monthly rent — can qualify through a Responsible Party: a parent or relative, in the US or back home, who shows either income of at least 50 times the monthly rent in their home country, or liquid assets or marketable securities of at least 80 times the monthly rent. On that $1,250 room, that is $62,500 of parental income or $100,000 of liquid assets — a bar many families clear even when the student earns nothing. The detail that sells it to parents: the Responsible Party signs only the guarantor company’s agreement, not your apartment lease. No US credit history is required on this route. Before you wire any deposit to celebrate an approval, read how security deposits in Miami work and what Florida law says about getting yours back — the guarantor fee does not replace the deposit; you will pay both.

What most people don’t know

The guarantor fee does not erase your debt — it moves it. If the company pays your landlord after a default, you still owe the company that money, and it can pursue you for it. Students hear “guaranteed” and think “insured.” It is the landlord who is protected, not you.

Acceptance is the building’s choice, and paying first is the classic mistake. No Florida rule forces a landlord to accept Insurent, TheGuarantors, Leap or any other company. Every season, students pay a non-refundable guaranty fee for a building that never accepted that company. Leap is explicit about its version of this trap: its Rent Guaranty only works at properties partnered with Leap, and it does not publish the list. The SETTLE sequence is: shortlist the apartment, ask the leasing office in writing which guarantor companies it accepts, then apply. In that order.

In Florida, a bigger refundable deposit is a legal alternative — run both numbers. Florida sets no state cap on security deposits (Fla. Stat. §83.49), so a landlord who will not take a guarantor company may accept extra deposit or advance rent instead. Compare honestly: a $1,300 non-refundable guarantor fee is gone forever, while a $1,300 extra deposit comes back if you leave the place clean — but the deposit ties up more cash at move-in and the landlord must still agree. Students spreading a fixed arrival budget across the whole cost of living in Miami often find the deposit route cheaper over a full degree, and the fee route cheaper in month one. The same trade-off between cash now and cash later drives the seasonal math in short-term winter rentals in Miami — different renter, same equation.

The fee comes back every renewal. A guaranty covers one lease term. Renew for a second year and you pay again — and if you changed buildings, you also need the new building to accept your company. Budget the fee as an annual cost of renting off campus, not a one-time arrival cost. Browse the full relocation guides hub for the rest of the arrival checklist, from renting without an SSN to lease clauses to read twice.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a guarantor service cost for an international student in Miami? Roughly one month’s rent, once per lease. Published ranges: Insurent charges non-US renters without US credit about 98–110% of one month’s rent for a one-year lease; TheGuarantors generally runs from about 40% of a month to slightly over a full month; Leap runs about 4.5–8% of annual rent. On a $1,250 shared room near FIU, expect roughly $500–$1,375 depending on the company and your file.

Can I qualify for a guarantor service with no US credit and no income? Yes, through a Responsible Party: a parent or relative whose income is at least 50 times the monthly rent, or whose liquid assets are at least 80 times the monthly rent, in their home country. That person signs the guarantor company’s agreement only — not your lease. Students with their own funds can also qualify directly with liquid assets of at least 50 times the monthly rent.

Does every Miami landlord accept guarantor companies? No. Acceptance is each building’s own policy, and some services only work at partnered properties. Ask the leasing office which companies it accepts — in writing — before you pay any guarantor or application fee. If a building accepts none, your alternatives are a US-based personal guarantor, a larger deposit or advance rent (legal in Florida, which has no deposit cap), on-campus housing, or a different building.

Is the guarantor fee refundable? Generally no, once the guaranty is issued and you sign. Leap refunds only if the property rejects you after its approval or the lease is cancelled before move-in, minus a 3% processing fee; Insurent’s renter terms provide a refund if you do not get the apartment. Read the refund clause before paying, not after — and remember the fee is charged again at every renewal.

Fees, acceptance lists and housing policies move — figures above reflect published terms and Miami rents as of October 12, 2026. This is general information, not legal or immigration advice.

Yara Coker — SETTLE, relocation services in Miami.

Want help with your move to Miami?

Moving to Miami as an international student and stuck at the guarantor step? SETTLE checks which guarantor route your building actually accepts before you pay, compares the fee against a larger-deposit offer, and reviews the lease before you sign — so your first month’s budget survives your first apartment. Tell us your school and your move-in date:

Name

Versión en español: Vivir en Miami sin garante en EE. UU.: una empresa puede firmar por ti por cerca de un mes de renta (2026)

### Sources

WhatsAppa>