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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 Rockingham renters

In Rockingham, our team likes to work with reasonable renters. Here are a few of the traits we expect.

  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 renter is honest. A tenant does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
  3. A tenant is reasonably clean. A renter does not attract pests such as rodents and bugs.
  4. A renter does not damage systems.
  5. A tenant is courteous and nice 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 tenant reports problems when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause head-aches for property managers.
  8. A tenant doesn't complain when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't demand 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 tenant does not smoke in the rental.
  10. A renter 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 tenants who live up to this standard? Experience has taught us that tardy renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out troublesome renters.

 

Our Five Step Process

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

But even when every appearance initially is promising we still check the background of each applicant with a full background check. Every potential tenant 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 Rockingham: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

Rockingham Rental Management Resources

Our recommendation

After the background check is reviewed we make a recommendation to the property owner based upon our experience as rental managers in Rockingham and the information which we have verified. Ultimately the landlord decides if the risk is worth taking, but they make that decision based upon facts and our expert advice.

Should you know more about the local real estate market?

Nesbitt Realty's Guide to Real Estate is a free tool for everyone who wants to investigate real estate facts about Rockingham and surrounding communities.  The Guide to Real Estate has data about what has sold and what is for sale, and some compelling facts that you may not know.  Furthermore, our Guide highlights many of the fundamentals of living in Rockingham.  Of course, most of this is interesting for buyers and sellers, but real estate investors and tenants might also find this information to be very 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

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