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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 Boston renters

In Boston, our management staff prefers to work with dependable tenants. Here are some of the traits we seek out.

  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 renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A renter is reasonably clean. A renter does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not damage the property.
  5. A renter is courteous and nice to get along with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
  6. A renter doesn't bother neighbors.
  7. A tenant complains at appropriate times. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause issues for property managers.
  8. A renter doesn't complain 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 tenant does not smoke in the property.
  10. A renter is looking for a rental term that is as long as the owner wants to rent the property.

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

 

Our Five Step Process

Fair Housing Laws and our conscience dictates that we do not judge potential tenants in Boston based upon appearance.  Experience has taught us that appearances can be very decieving. We do however assess people based upon their history and their actions. If a applicant is rude to our managers from the outset, they will probably be rude as renters. If a is dishonest, we can expect them to be unreliable as a tenant.  If a has a problem scrounging up certified fundsfor background fees and the first month of rent, we will expect that same person will have troubles while they are in the rental.

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

Boston Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

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

Our Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for anyone who needs to find out more about Boston and surrounding communities.  The Guide to Real Estate has information about what has sold and what is on the market, as well as a few compelling facts that you might not be aware of.  And, our Guide has many of the fundamentals of living in Boston.  As a matter of course, all of this is helpful for buyers and sellers, but property owners and tenants may also find the facts to be somewhat sobering.

Our Broker 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

Kim Nesbitt and Julie Nesbitt
Kim Nesbitt and 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