What we seek in Northern Virginia tenants
In Northern Virginia, our team likes to deal with good tenants. Here are some of the traits we expect.
- A renter pays the rent on time every month. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
- A tenant has integrity. A tenant does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
- A tenant is fastidious. A renter does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
- A tenant does not break systems.
- A tenant is courteous and pleasant to work with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
- A tenant doesn't bother neighbors.
- A renter complains at appropriate times. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause issues for property managers.
- A renter doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't ask to upgrade functioning systems. A tenant doesn't expect more than the lease provides. A tenant doesn't complain that an appliance doesn't work when the tenant doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
- A tenant does not smoke in the rental.
- A tenant is looking for a lease that is as long as the real estate investor wants to rent the property.
So this is what we're looking for in a tenant, but how do we find tenants who measure up to this standard? Experience has taught us that bad renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out difficult renters.
Our Five Step Process
Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential tenants in Northern Virginia based upon appearance. Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess potential renters based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our staff at the outset, they will probably be troublesome as renters. If a lies, we can expect them to be untrustworthy as a tenant. If a has troubles producing fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same applicant will have troubles during the lease.
But even if every statement initially is good we still check the background of every potential renter with a complete background check. Every potential renter and occupant must provide a government-issue photo identification. From there, as rental we start our vetting process.
How we protect the landlord’s interests in Northern Virginia:
Northern Virginia Rental Management Resources
Basics
Fundamental info about what property management in Northern Virginia.
Getting Started
Learn more about getting started with rental property management
Find A Tenant
List your property to rent to find a dependable renter in Northern Virginia fast.
Accounting
How does Nesbitt Realty keep track of income and expenses for landlords?
Cost
A breakdown of fees associated with rental management in Northern Virginia
Vetting
How Nesbitt Realty checks the backgrounds of tenants for our clients.
Reserves
What is a contingency reserve account?
Territory
Where does Nesbitt Realty manage rental investments?
Clients
Who uses Nesbitt Realty management services?
Landlord Reference
a handy archive for property owners in Northern Virginia
- Before you rent out your rental property in Northern Virginia
- Collections and evictions
- Communications with the renter
- During the lease term
- End of lease term and what happens when a renter breaks the lease
- How does the rental investor get paid?
- How your property management company handles the association and your community
- How your management company handles utilities
- How Nesbitt Management finds renters
- Insurance matters for rental investors using our rental management
- How Nesbitt Management handles keys
- Northern Virginia property owner responsibilities
- Maintenance, repairs & inspections for your property in Northern Virginia
- The move-in inspection
- Property management information form
- Selling a 1031 tax exchange & more
- Starting our management of your rental property
- When landlords don't yet know their new address
- Vetting tenants in Northern Virginia
More Information About Northern Virginia
Our recommendation
After the background check is finished we make a recommendation to the owner based upon our experience as property managers in Northern Virginia and the information that we have verified. Ultimately the real estate investor decides if the risk is worth taking, but they make that decision based upon facts and our expert advice.
Do you want know more about this area?
Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a helpful tool for everyone who needs to review important real estate information about Northern Virginia and neighboring communities. The Guide to Real Estate compiles data about what has sold and what is currently listed, as well as a few interesting facts that you might not be aware of. And, our Guide highlights quite a few of the assets of life in Northern Virginia. As might be expected, all of this is useful for buyers and sellers, but landlords and renters might also find this data to be quite enlightening.
Our Broker Will Nesbitt

"I am by nature a trusting person, but this business has taught me to verify every statement that a tenant makes. Scammers and bad tenants can sometimes give every appearance of being trustworthy and upright people. We never cut corners on background checks." ~ Will Nesbitt
Julie Nesbitt

I like tenants that pay on time. Late paying tenants cause extra work and unnecessary stress for landlords and property managers. ~ Julie Nesbitt