Vetting Tenants — How we protect the landlord’s interests.

What we look for in Woodbridge tenants

In Woodbridge, Nesbitt Realty wants to deal with reasonable tenants. Here are a few of the traits we look for.

  1. A renter 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 tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
  3. A renter is neat. A tenant does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not break the home.
  5. A renter is courteous and easy to work with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't disturb neighbors.
  7. A renter reports problems at appropriate times. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant 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 renter does not smoke in the rental.
  10. A renter is looking for a lease that is as long as the owner 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 troublesome renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out difficult renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential renters in Woodbridge based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however judge potential renters based upon their track record and their actions. If a applicant is difficult with our staff from the beginning, they will probably be troublesome as tenants. If a makes false statements, we can expect them to be dishonest as a renter.  If a has troubles producing certified fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same potential tenant will have troubles during the lease.

But even if every appearance initially is promising we still vet every applicant with a full background check. Every person 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 Woodbridge: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

Woodbridge Property Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is complete we make a recommendation to the landlord based upon our experience as property managers in Woodbridge 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.

Do you want know more about this community?

Our Guide to Real Estate is a handy tool for anyone who hopes to learn more about Woodbridge and surrounding areas.  The Guide to Real Estate has information regarding what has sold and what is on the market, and a few interesting facts that you might not know.  Furthermore, our Guide highlights some fundamentals of living in Woodbridge.  As a matter of course, most of this is interesting for purchasers and sellers, but owners and renters might also find the facts to be quite sobering.

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 and Julie
On the boat at Sunset

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