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

In Sutton_Oaks, our team likes to work with good tenants. Here are some of the traits we seek out.

1. A renter pays the rent on time every month. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
2. A tenant is trustworthy. A renter does not sneak in a co-tenant or pet.
3. A renter is neat. A renter does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
4. A tenant does not damage systems.
5. A renter is courteous and easy to get along with. A renter knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
6. A renter doesn't disturb neighbors.
7. A renter complains when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause head-aches for property managers.
8. A tenant doesn't complain 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 tenant doesn't complain that an appliance doesn't work when the tenant 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 renters who measure up to this ideal? Experience has taught us that troublesome renters can appear as polite, nicely-dress, well educated people with jobs. We have a knack for sniffing out difficult tenants.