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

In Northern Virginia, our team wants to work with reasonable renters. Here are a few of the traits we seek out.

1. A tenant pays the rent when due every time. This means paying on or before the first, rather than at 5 pm on the 5th.
2. A renter has integrity. A renter does not sneak in a co-renter or pet.
3. A renter is neat. A tenant does not bring pests such as rodents and bugs.
4. A renter does not break the property.
5. A renter is courteous and nice to get along with. A tenant knows the difference between a property manager and a hotel concierge.
6. A tenant doesn't annoy neighbors.
7. A tenant reports problems when appropriate. Renters that don't report maintenance issues cost real estate investors money and cause issues for property managers.
8. A tenant doesn't complain when it's not appropriate. This means that a tenant doesn't ask to replace 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 rental.
10. A tenant is looking for a lease that is as long as the property owner wants to rent the rental.

So this is what we're looking for in a tenant, but how do we find tenants 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 nose for sniffing out unreasonable renters.