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

In Arlington, our management staff wants to work with good renters. Here are a few of the traits we seek out.

1. A renter pays the rent when due every month. 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-tenant or pet.
3. A tenant is reasonably clean. A renter does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
4. A renter does not damage the property.
5. A tenant is courteous and easy to work with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
6. A renter doesn't bother neighbors.
7. A renter reports problems when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause issues for property managers.
8. A renter doesn't complain when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't demand to replace 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 renter 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 tenant, but how do we find renters who measure up to this ideal? Experience has taught us that bad tenants can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out unreasonable renters.