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

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

What we look for in Northern Virginia tenants

In Northern Virginia, Nesbitt Realty likes to work with dependable renters. Here are some of the traits we expect.

  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-tenant or pet.
  3. A tenant is neat. A tenant does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not misuse systems.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy to get along 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 property owners money and cause head-aches for property managers.
  8. A renter 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 tenant doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A tenant does not smoke in the home.
  10. A tenant is looking for a rental term that is as long as the landlord wants to rent the home.

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 renters 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 Northern Virginia based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge potential renters based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our staff at the beginning, they will probably be trying as renters. If a lies, we will expect them to be untrustworthy as a tenant.  If a has a problem finding fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we can 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 applicant with a complete background check. Every potential renter 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 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 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 Northern Virginia and surrounding areas.  The Guide to Real Estate includes data about what has sold and what is on the market, as well as a couple of surprising facts that you might not know.  Not to mention, our Guide has many of the aspects of living in Northern Virginia.  Definitely, most of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but owners and renters should also find these resources to be very informative.

Our Broker Will Nesbitt

Realtors in the Shenandoah Valley
Will and Julie on Woodstock Tower

"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