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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 renters

In Northern Virginia, Nesbitt Realty likes to deal with reasonable tenants. Here are some of the traits we look for.

  1. A renter 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 trustworthy. A tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A renter is reasonably clean. A tenant does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not break the property or its systems.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy 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 renter complains when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause head-aches for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't ask 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 tenant does not smoke in the home.
  10. A tenant is looking for a lease that is as long as the real estate investor wants to rent the home.

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

 

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 judge potential tenants based upon their track record and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our staff at the beginning, they will probably be rude as tenants. If a is caught fabricating facts, we can expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has troubles scrounging up money for background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential tenant will have difficulty while they are in the rental.

But even if every statement initially is promising we still check the background of each potential tenant with a full background check. Every applicant and occupant must provide 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 property owner 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.

Should you understand more about this area?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a helpful tool for anyone who wants to review important real estate information about Northern Virginia and surrounding communities.  The Guide to Real Estate provides information about what has sold and what is currently listed, and many shocking facts that you may not be aware of.  Not to mention, our Guide highlights many of the fundamentals of living in Northern Virginia.  Of course, most of this is helpful for buyers and sellers, but property owners and tenants should also find this information 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

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