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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 Alexandria renters

In Alexandria, our management staff likes to deal with reliable tenants. Here are some of the traits we look for.

  1. A tenant pays the rent on time every month. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
  2. A renter is trustworthy. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is fastidious. A renter does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not misuse the property or its systems.
  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 annoy neighbors.
  7. A renter complains when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't gripe 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 tenant doesn't complain that an appliance doesn't work when the renter doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A renter does not smoke in the home.
  10. A renter is looking for a lease that is as long as the landlord wants to rent the home.

So this is what we're looking for in a renter, but how do we find renters who measure up to this standard? Experience has taught us that troublesome renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out tardy renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential tenants in Alexandria based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess potential tenants based upon their track record and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with us at the start, they will probably be rude as tenants. If a lies, we will expect them to be unreliable as a renter.  If a has difficulty 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 action initially is promising we still check the background of each applicant with a complete background check. Every applicant and occupant must provide a government-issue photo identification. From there, as property managers we start our vetting process.

How we protect the landlord’s interests in Alexandria: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

Alexandria Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is finished we make a recommendation to the landlord based upon our experience as property managers in Alexandria and the information that 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?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a handy tool for everyone who hopes to review important real estate information about Alexandria and surrounding areas.  The Guide to Real Estate has data about what has sold and what is on the market, as well as some interesting facts that you may not know.  And, our Guide has some benefits of living in Alexandria.  Yes, all of this is helpful for buyers and sellers, but owners and renters will likely also find this data 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

Realtor 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