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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 Dale City tenants

In Dale City, our team wants to work with reasonable renters. Here are a few of the traits we look for.

  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 honest. A tenant does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is fastidious. A renter does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not damage the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and pleasant to work with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't annoy neighbors.
  7. A renter reports problems at appropriate times. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause problems for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't demand 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 tenant is looking for a lease that is as long as the real estate investor wants to rent the property.

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 unreasonable tenants 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 renters in Dale City 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 us at the outset, they will probably be trying as tenants. If a makes false statements, we will expect them to be untrustworthy as a tenant.  If a has troubles producing certified fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same person will have troubles while they are in the rental.

But even when every appearance initially is good we still vet each applicant with a complete background check. Every potential tenant 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 Dale City: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

Dale City Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is reviewed we make a recommendation to the real estate investor based upon our experience as rental managers in Dale City 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 know more about this local real estate market?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for everyone who wants to find out more about Dale City and nearby communities.  The Guide to Real Estate has information about what has sold and what is for sale, as well as a couple of interesting facts that you may not be aware of.  And, our Guide features quite a few of the fundamentals of residing in Dale City.  As a matter of course, all of this is interesting for buyers and sellers, but landlords and renters will also find this data 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

Kim Nesbitt and Julie Nesbitt
Kim Nesbitt 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