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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 Occoquan tenants

In Occoquan, our team likes to deal with good tenants. Here are some of the traits we expect.

  1. A renter pays the rent when due every month. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
  2. A tenant is trustworthy. A renter does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A tenant is fastidious. A renter does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A tenant does not destroy systems.
  5. A tenant is courteous and pleasant to work with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't annoy neighbors.
  7. A tenant complains when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost property owners money and cause issues 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 tenant 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 renter does not smoke in the property.
  10. A renter is looking for a lease that is as long as the landlord wants to rent the home.

So this is what we're looking for in a tenant, but how do we find tenants who measure up to this standard? Experience has taught us that difficult renters 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 Occoquan based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess potential tenants based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to us at the start, they will probably be trying as tenants. If a makes false statements, we can expect them to be dishonest as a tenant.  If a has difficulty producing money for background fees and the first month of rent, we can expect that same potential renter will have difficulty during the lease.

But even when every appearance initially is good we still check the background of each potential renter with a complete background check. Every applicant and occupant must submit a government-issue photo identification. From there, as rental we start our vetting process.

How we protect the landlord’s interests in Occoquan: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

Occoquan Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is complete we make a recommendation to the real estate investor based upon our experience as property managers in Occoquan 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 want understand more about the area?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for everyone who hopes to find out more about Occoquan and neighboring areas.  The Guide to Real Estate provides data regarding what has sold and what is for sale, as well as some surprising facts that you might not know.  Not to mention, our Guide has some elements of living in Occoquan.  Of course, most of this is interesting for buyers and sellers, but real estate investors and renters might also find the facts to be quite enlightening.

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 Aubrey Nesbitt
Will Nesbitt Julie Nesbitt Aubrey Nesbitt

 I like tenants that pay on time. Late paying tenants cause extra work and unnecessary stress for landlords and property managers. ~ Julie Nesbitt