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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 Oakton renters

In Oakton, our team wants to deal with good 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 has integrity. A tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A tenant is fussy about cleanliness. A tenant does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not break the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy to work with. A tenant understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A renter reports problems at appropriate times. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause problems for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't demand 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 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 rental term that is as long as the landlord wants to rent the rental.

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

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge applicants in Oakton based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess applicants based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with us from the beginning, they will probably be rude as renters. If a makes false statements, we can expect them to be unreliable as a tenant.  If a has troubles producing money for background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential tenant will have difficulty while they are in the rental.

But even when every appearance initially is promising we still vet each potential renter with a complete background check. Every potential tenant 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 Oakton: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

Oakton Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

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

Should you understand more about the local real estate market?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a handy tool for everyone who wants to review important real estate information about Oakton and nearby communities.  The Guide to Real Estate includes data regarding what has sold and what is for sale, and a couple of surprising facts that you might not be aware of.  Furthermore, our Guide has many of the aspects of life in Oakton.  Naturally, all of this is interesting for purchasers and sellers, but property owners and renters will likely also find the facts to be very eye-opening.

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