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

In Lee Harrison, our team likes to deal with good tenants. Here are a few 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 renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
3. A tenant is reasonably clean. A tenant does not attract pests like rodents and bugs.
4. A tenant does not damage the property or its systems.
5. A renter is courteous and pleasant to get along 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 issues for property managers.
8. A tenant doesn't gripe when it's not appropriate. This means that a renter doesn't ask to upgrade functioning systems. A renter 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 rental term that is as long as the landlord 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 troublesome tenants can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a nose for sniffing out difficult renters.