Vetting Tenants — How we protect the landlord’s interests.

What we look for in Montclair tenants

In Montclair, our management staff likes to deal with reliable renters. Here are a few of the traits we look for.

  1. A renter pays the rent when due every month. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
  2. A tenant is trustworthy. A tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A tenant is reasonably clean. A renter does not bring pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not misuse the property or its systems.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy to get along with. A tenant understands 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. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause head-aches for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't complain when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't ask to upgrade 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 lease 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 tenants who measure up to this ideal? 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 potential tenants in Montclair based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess potential tenants based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with us from the outset, they will probably be trying as renters. If a is caught fabricating facts, we can expect them to be unreliable as a tenant.  If a has a problem finding fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same person will have problems during the lease.

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

How we protect the landlord’s interests in Montclair: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

Montclair Rental 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 Montclair 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.

Do you want know more about this community?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for anyone who wants to investigate real estate facts about Montclair and surrounding communities.  The Guide to Real Estate includes facts about what has sold and what is currently listed, and many compelling facts that you might not know.  Not to mention, our Guide has quite a few of the fundamentals of life in Montclair.  Certainly, all of this is helpful for buyers and sellers, but rental investors and renters might also find these tools to be very enlightening.

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
Will and 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