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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 Northern Virginia tenants

In Northern Virginia, Nesbitt Realty prefers to work with reasonable tenants. Here are some of the traits we expect.

  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 tenant has integrity. A tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A tenant is reasonably clean. A renter does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not misuse the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy to work with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A tenant reports problems at appropriate times. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't complain 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 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 property.
  10. A tenant is looking for a rental term that is as long as the real estate investor wants to rent the property.

So this is what we're looking for in a tenant, but how do we find tenants who live up to this standard? Experience has taught us that troublesome tenants can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out bad renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge applicants in Northern Virginia based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge potential tenants based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is rude to our managers from the start, they will probably be rude as renters. If a makes false statements, we can expect them to be untrustworthy as a renter.  If a has difficulty producing certified fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same applicant will have difficulty while they are in the rental.

But even if every statement initially is promising we still check the background of every person 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 Northern Virginia: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

Northern Virginia Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is finished we make a recommendation to the landlord based upon our experience as property managers in Northern Virginia and the information that we have verified. Ultimately the property owner decides if the risk is worth taking, but they make that decision based upon facts and our expert advice.

Do you need understand more about this area?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a handy tool for anyone who hopes to review important real estate information about Northern Virginia and nearby communities.  The Guide to Real Estate includes data regarding what has sold and what is on the market, and many interesting facts that you might not be aware of.  Also, our Guide has some assets of residing in Northern Virginia.  As a matter of course, all of this is interesting for buyers and sellers, but rental investors and tenants may also find this information to be somewhat 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

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