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

In Stratford, our management staff wants to deal with reasonable tenants. Here are some of the traits we expect.

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 renter is trustworthy. A renter does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
3. A tenant is fussy about cleanliness. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
4. A tenant does not misuse the home.
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 annoy neighbors.
7. A renter reports problems at appropriate times. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause head-aches for property managers.
8. A renter doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't demand 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 tenant does not smoke in the property.
10. A tenant is looking for a rental term 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 live up to this standard? Experience has taught us that troublesome tenants can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out difficult renters.