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

In West_Village_of_Shirlington, our management staff likes to deal with reliable tenants. Here are some of the traits we expect.

1. A tenant 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 renter is honest. A renter does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
3. A tenant is fussy about cleanliness. A renter does not bring pests like rodents and bugs.
4. A renter does not destroy the property or its systems.
5. A renter is courteous and pleasant to work with. A renter understands the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
6. A renter doesn't annoy neighbors.
7. A renter complains when appropriate. tenants 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 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 renter doesn't know how to operate the appliance.
9. A tenant does not smoke in the property.
10. A renter 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 renters who measure up to this ideal? Experience has taught us that tardy renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out difficult tenants.