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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 Arlington Ridge tenants

In Arlington Ridge, our management staff prefers to work with dependable renters. Here are a few of the traits we expect.

  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 renter is trustworthy. A renter 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 damage the property or its systems.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy to work with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A tenant complains when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors 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 renter 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 renter is looking for a rental term that is as long as the property owner wants to rent the property.

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 tardy tenants can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out difficult renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge applicants 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 difficult with our staff from the beginning, they will probably be trying as tenants. If a makes false statements, we will expect them to be untrustworthy as a renter.  If a has difficulty scrounging up money for background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same applicant will have difficulty during the lease.

But even when every appearance initially is promising we still vet every applicant with a complete 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 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 reviewed we make a recommendation to the real estate investor based upon our experience as rental managers in Arlington Ridge 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.

Should you understand more about our local real estate market?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a free resource for anyone who wants to review important real estate information about Arlington Ridge and neighboring communities.  The Guide to Real Estate provides facts regarding what has sold and what is for sale, and many interesting facts that you may not be aware of.  Also, our Guide spotlights quite a few of the assets of living in Arlington Ridge.  Of course, all of this is helpful for purchasers and sellers, but real estate investors and tenants may also find these tools to be quite informative.

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 Nesbitt
Julie Nesbitt, a Realtor with experience in Northern Virginia

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