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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, our management staff wants to work with reasonable tenants. 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 renter has integrity. A renter does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A tenant is fastidious. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not misuse systems.
  5. A tenant is courteous and easy to work with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't annoy neighbors.
  7. A tenant reports problems at appropriate times. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause head-aches 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 tenant doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A renter 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 home.

So this is what we're looking for in a renter, but how do we find renters who measure 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 nose for sniffing out troublesome tenants.

 

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 potential tenants based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to us from the start, they will probably be difficult as renters. If a is caught fabricating facts, we will expect them to be unreliable as a renter.  If a has troubles producing money for background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential tenant will have problems while they are in the rental.

But even if every appearance initially is good we still vet each person with a complete 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 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 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 property managers in Northern Virginia and the information that we have verified. Ultimately the real estate investor 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 our community?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a helpful tool for everyone who needs to learn more about Northern Virginia and neighboring communities.  The Guide to Real Estate provides facts about what has sold and what is on the market, and many surprising facts that you may not be aware of.  Not to mention, our Guide highlights quite a few of the aspects of residing in Northern Virginia.  As might be expected, most of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but real estate investors and renters might also find the facts to be quite sobering.

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

Nesbitt Realty
Nesbitt Realty is here when you needed.

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