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

In Alexandria_Square, our management staff prefers to deal with reliable 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 tenant does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
3. A renter is fastidious. A renter does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
4. A renter does not damage the property or its systems.
5. A tenant is courteous and pleasant to work with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
6. A renter doesn't annoy neighbors.
7. A tenant complains when appropriate. tenants that don't report maintenance issues cost landlords money and cause problems for property managers.
8. A tenant doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't ask to upgrade 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 renter 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 landlord wants to rent the home.

So this is what we're looking for in a tenant, but how do we find renters who measure 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 unreasonable tenants.