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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 Northern Virginia renters

In Northern Virginia, Nesbitt Realty prefers to deal with dependable renters. Here are a few of the traits we look for.

  1. A renter pays the rent when due every time. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
  2. A tenant is honest. A tenant does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A renter is neat. A tenant does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not break systems.
  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 complains 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 replace 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 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 renter, but how do we find tenants who measure 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 nose for sniffing out bad tenants.

 

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 renters based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to us from the beginning, they will probably be difficult as tenants. If a makes false statements, we can expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has a problem scrounging up money for background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same applicant will have problems while they are in the rental.

But even when every appearance initially is promising we still check the background of every applicant with a complete background check. Every person 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 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 complete we make a recommendation to the real estate investor based upon our experience as rental 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 the community?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a helpful resource for anyone who wants to investigate real estate facts about Northern Virginia and neighboring areas.  The Guide to Real Estate includes information about what has sold and what is for sale, as well as some shocking facts that you might not know.  And, our Guide spotlights some fundamentals of living in Northern Virginia.  Of course, most of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but rental investors and renters will probably also find these tools to be very eye-opening.

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

Julie & Grover
Julie

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