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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 Rockingham County renters

In Rockingham County, our management staff likes to work with reliable renters. Here are some of the traits we seek out.

  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 renter is honest. A renter does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A tenant is neat. A renter does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not overwork the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy to get along with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't disturb neighbors.
  7. A tenant reports problems when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause head-aches for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't complain when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't ask 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 rental.
  10. A renter is looking for a rental term that is as long as the real estate investor 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 ideal? Experience has taught us that difficult renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out difficult tenants.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential tenants in Rockingham County based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess potential tenants based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to our managers at the beginning, they will probably be trying as renters. If a makes false statements, we will expect them to be untrustworthy as a renter.  If a has difficulty scrounging up certified fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential renter will have problems during the lease.

But even when every appearance initially is promising we still check the background of each person with a complete background check. Every person 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 Rockingham County: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

Rockingham County Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is reviewed we make a recommendation to the landlord based upon our experience as property managers in Rockingham County 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 want understand more about the local real estate market?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for everyone who hopes to learn more about Rockingham County and nearby communities.  The Guide to Real Estate provides information regarding what has sold and what is currently listed, and a couple of interesting facts that you may not know.  Not to mention, our Guide spotlights many of the fundamentals of life in Rockingham County.  Of course, most of this is interesting for purchasers and sellers, but real estate investors and tenants will also find this data to be very informative.

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