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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 tenants

In Northern Virginia, Nesbitt Realty prefers to work with dependable tenants. Here are some 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 tenant has integrity. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is neat. A tenant does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not destroy the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and nice to get along with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A tenant reports problems when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause problems for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't complain when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't ask 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 rental term that is as long as the owner wants to rent the home.

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

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge people in Northern Virginia based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge people based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with us from the start, they will probably be difficult as renters. If a lies, we will expect them to be unreliable as a renter.  If a has a problem finding money for background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same potential renter will have difficulty while they are in the rental.

But even when every action initially is good we still vet every applicant with a full background check. Every applicant and occupant must submit a government-issue photo identification. From there, as rental 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 Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is complete 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 landlord decides if the risk is worth taking, but they make that decision based upon facts and our expert advice.

Do you need know more about the area?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free resource for anyone who needs to find out more about Northern Virginia and neighboring communities.  The Guide to Real Estate compiles facts about what has sold and what is on the market, as well as a couple of compelling facts that you may not know.  Also, our Guide highlights some aspects of residing in Northern Virginia.  Certainly, most of this is interesting for purchasers and sellers, but owners and renters should also find these tools to be very eye-opening.

Our Broker Will Nesbitt

Principal Broker of Nesbitt Realty, 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 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