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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 Fort Belvoir tenants

In Fort Belvoir, our management staff likes to deal with reliable tenants. Here are some 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 tenant is honest. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is fussy about cleanliness. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not break the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and nice to get along 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 property owners money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't ask to replace 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 renter doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
  9. A renter does not smoke in the property.
  10. A tenant is looking for a lease that is as long as the real estate investor wants to rent the property.

So this is what we're looking for in a tenant, but how do we find tenants who live up to this standard? Experience has taught us that bad tenants can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out unreasonable renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential renters in Fort Belvoir based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess potential renters based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with us at the start, they will probably be trying as renters. If a makes false statements, we will expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has difficulty producing money for background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same potential renter will have difficulty during the lease.

But even if every appearance initially is promising we still check the background of each potential tenant with a complete background check. Every person 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 Fort Belvoir: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

Fort Belvoir Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is reviewed we make a recommendation to the landlord based upon our experience as rental managers in Fort Belvoir and the information that we have verified. Ultimately the owner 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 the area?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for everyone who hopes to find out more about Fort Belvoir and neighboring areas.  The Guide to Real Estate compiles facts about what has sold and what is for sale, as well as a couple of shocking facts that you might not know.  Also, our Guide has some benefits of life in Fort Belvoir.  As might be expected, most of this is useful for buyers and sellers, but property owners and renters should also find this data to be quite eye-opening.

Our Broker Will Nesbitt

WIll Nesbitt, Sean Nesbitt, and Kaelyn Nesbitt
WIll Nesbitt, Sean Nesbitt, and Kaelyn 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