Most large landlords check credit as part of their regular proceedure. It is a good idea for you to be up-front and honest with your real estate agent on this point. Not all landlords they represent require credit checks. A good agent may be able to explain away your blemish on the credit report as well. For example the agent can highlight the great landlord references and minimize your past credit problems.
You should also contact the credit agencies and get a copy of your credit report. You can submit a small explanantion of why the blemish occurred. This will become part of your report and will help diminish the problem when the landlord or agent first sees your application.
Another idea is to establish lots of new credit. The problem then becomes only a small portion of the total credit history thereby lowering the risk factor rating.