Vetting Tenants — How we protect the landlord’s interests.

In Northern Virginia, our team prefers to deal with reasonable tenants. 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 tenant has integrity. A renter does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
3. A renter is neat. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
4. A tenant does not misuse the home.
5. A renter is courteous and pleasant to work with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
6. A renter doesn't disturb neighbors.
7. A tenant complains at appropriate times. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause head-aches for property managers.
8. A tenant 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 renter 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 lease that is as long as the property owner wants to rent the home.

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