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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 Manassas tenants

In Manassas, our team wants to work with reliable 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 renter has integrity. A tenant does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is fastidious. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not damage the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and nice to get along with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A tenant reports problems at appropriate times. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords 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 renter 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 property.
  10. A tenant is looking for a lease that is as long as the real estate investor 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 unreasonable renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out bad tenants.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge people in Manassas based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge people based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our managers from the start, they will probably be rude as renters. If a is dishonest, we can expect them to be untrustworthy as a renter.  If a has troubles finding fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential tenant will have problems during the lease.

But even if every statement initially is good we still vet each potential renter with a full background check. Every applicant and occupant must submit a government-issue photo identification. From there, as property managers we start our vetting process.

How we protect the landlord’s interests in Manassas: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

Manassas Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is complete we make a recommendation to the property owner based upon our experience as property managers in Manassas 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.

Should you know more about this community?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a handy tool for everyone who wants to find out more about Manassas and surrounding communities.  The Guide to Real Estate has information regarding what has sold and what is currently listed, as well as a couple of interesting facts that you may not know.  Also, our Guide highlights quite a few of the elements of residing in Manassas.  As a matter of course, all of this is useful for buyers and sellers, but rental investors and tenants will likely also find this data to be quite 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

Will and Julie

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