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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 Fort Valley renters

In Fort Valley, Nesbitt Realty likes to work with reasonable renters. Here are a few of the traits we expect.

  1. A tenant 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 renter is trustworthy. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is reasonably clean. A renter does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not break the home.
  5. A tenant is courteous and pleasant to work with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't disturb neighbors.
  7. A renter reports problems when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't ask to upgrade functioning systems. A renter doesn't expect more than the lease provides. A renter doesn't complain that an appliance doesn't work when the tenant 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 landlord 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 troublesome renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out bad tenants.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential renters in Fort Valley 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 rude to our managers at the outset, they will probably be troublesome as renters. If a makes false statements, we will expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has a problem producing money for background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential tenant will have problems during the lease.

But even if every statement initially is promising we still check the background of each potential tenant 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 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 Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is finished we make a recommendation to the real estate investor based upon our experience as property managers in Fort Valley and the information which 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 understand more about this local real estate market?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a handy resource for everyone who wants to investigate real estate facts about Fort Valley and neighboring communities.  The Guide to Real Estate provides information regarding what has sold and what is for sale, as well as a couple of compelling facts that you might not know.  In addition, our Guide spotlights some fundamentals of living in Fort Valley.  Of course, most of this is useful for buyers and sellers, but real estate investors and renters should also find this information to be very sobering.

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

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