(703)765-0300

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

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

What we seek in Clifton tenants

In Clifton, Nesbitt Realty wants to deal with reliable renters. Here are some 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 renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A renter is reasonably clean. A renter does not bring pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not overwork the property or its systems.
  5. A renter is courteous and pleasant 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 tenant reports problems at appropriate times. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause head-aches for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't demand to upgrade functioning systems. A renter doesn't expect more than the lease provides. A tenant doesn't complain that an appliance doesn't work when the tenant doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A tenant does not smoke in the property.
  10. A renter is looking for a lease 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 measure up to this ideal? 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 difficult renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge applicants in Clifton 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 at the outset, they will probably be troublesome as renters. If a lies, we will expect them to be untrustworthy as a renter.  If a has a problem producing money for background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same person will have problems while they are in the rental.

But even when every action initially is promising we still check the background of every person with a full background check. Every potential tenant 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 Clifton: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

Clifton Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is finished we make a recommendation to the owner based upon our experience as rental managers in Clifton 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 want know more about our local real estate market?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a helpful tool for anyone who hopes to review important real estate information about Clifton and surrounding areas.  The Guide to Real Estate provides facts regarding what has sold and what is for sale, and many interesting facts that you may not know.  Not to mention, our Guide spotlights quite a few of the aspects of life in Clifton.  Of course, most of this is helpful for purchasers and sellers, but real estate investors and renters may also find this data to be quite useful.

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

Will and Julie at a Nationals Game
Will & 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