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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 tenants

In Northern Virginia, our team prefers to deal with dependable tenants. Here are a few of the traits we seek out.

  1. A tenant 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 has integrity. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A renter is neat. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not damage systems.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy to get along with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A renter reports problems when appropriate. Renters 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 renter doesn't ask 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 home.
  10. A renter is looking for a lease that is as long as the property owner wants to rent the property.

So this is what we're looking for in a tenant, but how do we find renters 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 nose for sniffing out tardy tenants.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge people 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 history and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our staff at the start, they will probably be troublesome as renters. If a is caught fabricating facts, we can expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has troubles producing fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential renter will have difficulty during the lease.

But even if every appearance initially is good we still vet each person with a full background check. Every applicant 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 reviewed 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 real estate investor decides if the risk is worth taking, but they make that decision based upon facts and our expert advice.

Should you understand more about this community?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a free resource for everyone who needs to review important real estate information about Northern Virginia and nearby areas.  The Guide to Real Estate includes facts regarding what has sold and what is for sale, and some shocking facts that you might not know.  Furthermore, our Guide features many of the aspects of living in Northern Virginia.  Yes, all of this is useful for purchasers and sellers, but real estate investors and renters will also find this data to be somewhat informative.

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

Realtor 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