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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 Northern Virginia renters

In Northern Virginia, our management staff likes to deal with reliable renters. Here are a few of the traits we look for.

  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-renter or pet.
  3. A renter is neat. A renter does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not destroy the home.
  5. A tenant is courteous and pleasant to get along with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't annoy neighbors.
  7. A renter complains at appropriate times. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A renter 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 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 property owner wants to rent the rental.

So this is what we're looking for in a tenant, but how do we find tenants who measure up to this ideal? Experience has taught us that bad renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out tardy 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 reputation and their actions. If a applicant is rude to our managers at the outset, they will probably be trying as renters. If a is dishonest, we can 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 can expect that same potential renter 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 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 Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is complete we make a recommendation to the owner based upon our experience as rental 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 want understand more about this community?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for anyone who hopes to find out more about Northern Virginia and neighboring communities.  The Guide to Real Estate provides information regarding what has sold and what is for sale, and a few compelling facts that you might not be aware of.  Also, our Guide highlights some assets of life in Northern Virginia.  Of course, all of this is helpful for purchasers and sellers, but landlords and renters will likely also find this data 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

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