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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 Shenandoah renters

In Shenandoah, Nesbitt Realty wants to deal with reasonable tenants. Here are some of the traits we seek out.

  1. A renter pays the rent when due every time. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
  2. A renter is honest. A tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A renter is fastidious. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not misuse the home.
  5. A tenant is courteous and nice to work with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't disturb neighbors.
  7. A tenant reports problems at appropriate times. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause problems for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't demand to upgrade functioning systems. A tenant doesn't expect more than the lease provides. A renter doesn't complain that an appliance doesn't work when the renter doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A tenant does not smoke in the home.
  10. A renter is looking for a lease that is as long as the property owner wants to rent the rental.

So this is what we're looking for in a renter, 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 nose for sniffing out unreasonable tenants.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge people in Shenandoah 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 rude to us from the beginning, they will probably be difficult as tenants. If a makes false statements, we will expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has a problem finding certified fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential tenant will have problems during the lease.

But even when every action initially is good we still check the background of each person with a complete background check. Every potential tenant 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 Shenandoah: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

Shenandoah 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 Shenandoah and the information which 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.

Do you need understand more about this local real estate market?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for everyone who hopes to find out more about Shenandoah and neighboring communities.  The Guide to Real Estate has data about what has sold and what is currently listed, as well as many surprising facts that you might not be aware of.  In addition, our Guide features many of the elements of life in Shenandoah.  Naturally, most of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but real estate investors and tenants should also find these resources to be somewhat 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 Nesbitt
Julie and Will Nesbitt pause from property management to take a quick picture.

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