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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 Reston renters

In Reston, Nesbitt Realty prefers to work with good tenants. Here are a few of the traits we expect.

  1. A renter 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 tenant is honest. A tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A renter is neat. A renter does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not overwork systems.
  5. A tenant is courteous and nice to get along with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't disturb neighbors.
  7. A tenant complains when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause head-aches for property managers.
  8. A renter 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 property.
  10. A tenant 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 live up to this ideal? Experience has taught us that tardy renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out bad renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential tenants in Reston based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge people based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to our managers from the start, they will probably be trying as renters. If a lies, we can expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has a problem finding fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same potential renter will have difficulty while they are in the rental.

But even if every appearance initially is good we still check the background of every potential tenant with a full background check. Every applicant and occupant must provide a government-issue photo identification. From there, as rental we start our vetting process.

How we protect the landlord’s interests in Reston: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

Reston Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is complete we make a recommendation to the owner based upon our experience as property managers in Reston and the information which 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 need understand more about the local real estate market?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a handy resource for everyone who wants to review important real estate information about Reston and surrounding areas.  The Guide to Real Estate includes facts about what has sold and what is for sale, and a few shocking facts that you might not be aware of.  In addition, our Guide highlights some fundamentals of residing in Reston.  Certainly, all of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but real estate investors and renters will also find this information to be somewhat sobering.

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

Nesbitt Realty
Nesbitt Realty is here when you needed.

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