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Vetting Tenants — How we protect the landlord’s interests.

Vetting Tenants — How we protect the landlord’s interests.

What we look for in Northern Virginia renters

In Northern Virginia, our management staff wants to work with reliable tenants. Here are a few of the traits we look for.

  1. A renter pays the rent on time every time. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
  2. A tenant is honest. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is reasonably clean. A tenant does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not destroy the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and nice to work with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A tenant complains when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't complain when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't ask to replace functioning systems. A tenant doesn't expect more than the lease provides. A renter doesn't complain that an appliance doesn't work when the renter doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A tenant does not smoke in the property.
  10. 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 renter, but how do we find renters who live up to this ideal? 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 unreasonable tenants.

 

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 history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to our staff from the outset, they will probably be troublesome as tenants. If a is caught fabricating facts, we will expect them to be dishonest as a tenant.  If a has difficulty producing money for background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same potential tenant will have problems while they are in the rental.

But even if every appearance initially is good we still check the background of every potential renter with a full background check. Every person and occupant must submit a government-issue photo identification. From there, as rental we start our vetting process.

How we protect the landlord’s interests in Northern Virginia:Nesbitt Realty is committed to Fair Housing

  1. We Check The Applicant’s Credit History
  2. We Investigate The Applicant’s Criminal History
  3. We Investigate The Applicant’s Rental History
  4. We Look For Internal Consistency In The Rental Application
  5. We Want To Know If The Applicant Can Afford The Rent

Northern Virginia Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is complete we make a recommendation to the landlord based upon our experience as property managers in Northern Virginia and the information which we have verified. Ultimately the landlord decides if the risk is worth taking, but they make that decision based upon facts and our expert advice.

Do you need know more about this community?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a handy resource for everyone who hopes to learn more about Northern Virginia and neighboring areas.  The Guide to Real Estate provides data regarding what has sold and what is currently listed, as well as many interesting facts that you might not know.  Not to mention, our Guide has quite a few of the elements of residing in Northern Virginia.  As might be expected, all of this is interesting for purchasers and sellers, but property owners and tenants will also find these resources to be quite informative.

Our Broker Will Nesbitt

Will Nesbitt
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

Julie 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