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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, Nesbitt Realty wants to deal with reliable tenants. Here are a few of the traits we expect.

  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 renter is honest. A tenant does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A renter is fastidious. A tenant does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not overwork systems.
  5. A tenant is courteous and pleasant to get along with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A tenant doesn't disturb neighbors.
  7. A tenant complains at appropriate times. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause problems for property managers.
  8. A tenant 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 renter doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A tenant does not smoke in the rental.
  10. A renter is looking for a lease that is as long as the property owner wants to rent the rental.

So this is what we're looking for in a renter, but how do we find tenants who measure up to this standard? Experience has taught us that difficult tenants 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 applicants in Northern Virginia based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess people based upon their track record and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our staff at the outset, they will probably be troublesome as renters. If a lies, we can expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has difficulty scrounging up fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same applicant will have troubles during the lease.

But even when every statement initially is promising we still check the background of each person with a full background check. Every potential renter and occupant must provide 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 owner based upon our experience as property managers in Northern Virginia and the information that we have verified. Ultimately the landlord decides if the risk is worth taking, but they make that decision based upon facts and our expert advice.

Do you need know more about our community?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a helpful tool for everyone who hopes to find out more about Northern Virginia and nearby areas.  The Guide to Real Estate provides data about what has sold and what is on the market, and a couple of shocking facts that you may not know.  Also, our Guide spotlights many of the aspects of life in Northern Virginia.  Of course, most of this is useful for buyers and sellers, but property owners and renters might also find these tools to be quite useful.

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