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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 Arlington renters

In Arlington, Nesbitt Realty wants to work with reasonable renters. Here are some of the traits we expect.

  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 has integrity. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A renter is fussy about cleanliness. A renter does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not break the property or its systems.
  5. A tenant is courteous and easy to get along with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't disturb neighbors.
  7. A renter complains when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't ask to upgrade functioning systems. A renter doesn't expect more than the lease provides. A renter doesn't complain that an appliance doesn't work when the tenant doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A tenant does not smoke in the property.
  10. A renter is looking for a rental term 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 ideal? Experience has taught us that difficult renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out bad renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential renters in Arlington based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge applicants based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with us from the outset, they will probably be rude as tenants. If a makes false statements, we will expect them to be unreliable as a renter.  If a has difficulty finding certified fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same person will have difficulty during the lease.

But even when every appearance initially is good we still check the background of every potential renter with a complete background check. Every potential tenant 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 Arlington: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

Arlington Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

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

Do you want understand more about our area?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a helpful resource for everyone who wants to learn more about Arlington and neighboring communities.  The Guide to Real Estate includes facts about what has sold and what is for sale, as well as a few interesting facts that you might not know.  In addition, our Guide features some aspects of living in Arlington.  Naturally, most of this is interesting for buyers and sellers, but rental investors and tenants should also find this information to be somewhat enlightening.

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

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