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

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

What we seek in Shirlington tenants

In Shirlington, Nesbitt Realty wants to deal with good tenants. Here are some of the traits we expect.

  1. A tenant 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 has integrity. A tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A renter is fastidious. A renter does not bring pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not damage the property.
  5. A renter is courteous and nice to get along with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't annoy neighbors.
  7. A renter reports problems at appropriate times. tenants 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 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.
  9. A renter does not smoke in the rental.
  10. A renter is looking for a rental term that is as long as the property owner wants to rent the property.

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

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge people in Shirlington based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess potential tenants based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to us at the start, they will probably be difficult as tenants. If a lies, we will expect them to be untrustworthy as a tenant.  If a has difficulty producing money for background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same applicant will have troubles during the lease.

But even when every appearance initially is good we still check the background of every potential renter with a full 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 Shirlington: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

Shirlington Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

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

Do you need understand more about the area?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a handy resource for everyone who needs to investigate real estate facts about Shirlington and neighboring areas.  The Guide to Real Estate provides data about what has sold and what is for sale, as well as many compelling facts that you might not know.  In addition, our Guide highlights some assets of residing in Shirlington.  Yes, most of this is useful for buyers and sellers, but owners and renters should also find these tools to be somewhat sobering.

Our Broker 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