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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 Catlett renters

In Catlett, our team prefers to deal with reliable renters. Here are some of the traits we look for.

  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 trustworthy. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is neat. A tenant does not bring pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not misuse the property or its systems.
  5. A tenant is courteous and pleasant to work with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A tenant reports problems at appropriate times. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors 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 demand 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 renter doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A tenant does not smoke in the rental.
  10. A tenant is looking for a rental term that is as long as the owner wants to rent the rental.

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

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential renters in Catlett based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge applicants based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our managers at the beginning, they will probably be troublesome as renters. If a lies, we can expect them to be untrustworthy as a tenant.  If a has difficulty finding fundsfor 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 promising we still check the background of every potential tenant with a full background check. Every potential renter 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 Catlett: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

Catlett Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

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

Do you need know more about our area?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a handy tool for anyone who hopes to find out more about Catlett and nearby areas.  The Guide to Real Estate has data about what has sold and what is for sale, as well as a few surprising facts that you might not be aware of.  Also, our Guide highlights many of the fundamentals of residing in Catlett.  Naturally, all of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but property owners and tenants should also find this data 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

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