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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 tenants. Here are a few of the traits we look for.

  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 is honest. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is fussy about cleanliness. A tenant does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not destroy 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 complains when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't ask 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 property.
  10. A renter is looking for a rental term that is as long as the owner wants to rent the property.

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 unreasonable renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out bad renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential tenants in Northern Virginia based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess people based upon their reputation and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our staff at the start, they will probably be difficult as tenants. If a is dishonest, we can expect them to be untrustworthy as a renter.  If a has difficulty producing fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same applicant will have troubles during the lease.

But even if every action initially is promising we still check the background of each potential renter with a complete background check. Every person 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 Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

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

Do you need understand more about this local real estate market?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a helpful resource for everyone who wants to learn more about Northern Virginia and neighboring communities.  The Guide to Real Estate compiles data regarding what has sold and what is for sale, and a few surprising facts that you may not be aware of.  In addition, our Guide has quite a few of the elements of living in Northern Virginia.  Definitely, most of this is helpful for buyers and sellers, but owners and tenants should also find the facts to be somewhat informative.

Our Broker Will Nesbitt

Will Nesbitt Julie Nesbitt
Will Nesbitt Julie 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 Nesbitt Julie Nesbitt
Will 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