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

In Columbia_Condominium, our team wants to deal with reliable tenants. Here are some of the traits we expect.

1. A tenant 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 honest. 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 damage the property or its systems.
5. A tenant is courteous and pleasant to get along with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
6. A renter doesn't bother neighbors.
7. A renter complains when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause problems for property managers.
8. A tenant doesn't complain when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter 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 renter doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
9. A renter does not smoke in the property.
10. A tenant is looking for a lease that is as long as the owner wants to rent the home.

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