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

What we seek in Arlington Ridge renters

In Arlington Ridge, our management staff wants to work with reliable tenants. Here are a few of the traits we look for.

  1. A tenant pays the rent on time 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 tenant is neat. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not damage systems.
  5. A tenant is courteous and easy to work with. A tenant understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't annoy neighbors.
  7. A renter complains at appropriate times. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant 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 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 rental.

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

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge people in Arlington Ridge based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge applicants based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to us from the start, they will probably be troublesome as tenants. If a is dishonest, we can expect them to be dishonest as a tenant.  If a has difficulty finding fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same applicant will have troubles while they are in the rental.

But even when every action initially is promising we still vet each potential tenant 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 Arlington Ridge: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

Arlington Ridge Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

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

Do you want understand more about this community?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a handy tool for anyone who needs to review important real estate information about Arlington Ridge and neighboring areas.  The Guide to Real Estate has facts about what has sold and what is on the market, and a couple of compelling facts that you may not know.  And, our Guide spotlights many of the assets of life in Arlington Ridge.  Naturally, all of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but landlords and renters will probably also find this data to be very enlightening.

Our Broker Will Nesbitt

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Northern Virginia is an urban area with many peaceful parks.

"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