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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 Fort Valley renters

In Fort Valley, our management staff prefers to deal 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 tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A renter is reasonably clean. A tenant does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not overwork the property.
  5. A renter is courteous and pleasant to work with. A tenant understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't disturb neighbors.
  7. A renter complains when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause head-aches for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't gripe 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 renter does not smoke in the property.
  10. A renter 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 tenant, but how do we find renters who live up to this ideal? Experience has taught us that bad tenants can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out troublesome tenants.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge people in Fort Valley 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 staff from the outset, they will probably be trying as renters. If a is dishonest, we will expect them to be untrustworthy as a tenant.  If a has troubles producing 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 good we still vet every applicant with a complete background check. Every applicant and occupant must provide a government-issue photo identification. From there, as property managers we start our vetting process.

How we protect the landlord’s interests in Fort Valley: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

Fort Valley Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is complete we make a recommendation to the real estate investor based upon our experience as property managers in Fort Valley and the information that we have verified. Ultimately the 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 our area?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for anyone who wants to investigate real estate facts about Fort Valley and nearby areas.  The Guide to Real Estate has data regarding what has sold and what is on the market, as well as a couple of interesting facts that you might not know.  Not to mention, our Guide has quite a few of the fundamentals of life in Fort Valley.  Of course, most of this is useful for buyers and sellers, but landlords and renters might also find these resources to be somewhat edifying.

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