Rising rents are frustrating!! (fee, 4%, paint, required)

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by katie45

Not going to happen. . . this complex, plus the other 6 they own, is run by a large corporation. All they have to say to justify rent increases is that it's based on "market value" or "rising costs to maintain".

And, as Judge Judy says, "If you don't like it, move!"

In a rental market, the owner makes the rules.

There's been a really obnoxious trend in RE investment for the last, oh...20 years or so. Real Estate Investment Trusts, which are an investment instrument like stocks, that you can buy shares in, have been buying apartment buildings and also storage facilities. Once they acquire them, they cut management staff down to bare bones, in some cases, they eliminate groundskeepers, cut back on maintenance, and in some cases, start raising the rent on a once-every-8-months schedule. A building in Seattle they did this to emptied out by half, and remained partially empty for a long time. It started to look like a derelict property; weeds growing all over, paint fading.

I fail to see how that's a good investment. I guess they take over these buildings and simply milk them for income, but it doesn't work, because the rents can quickly get to the point that nobody will pay. Sounds like a flawed concept. Back when this started, rents in Seattle were relatively stable; the market handout gone bonkers yet. It can only work in markets like the Bay Area, the Seattle area, and NYC.

[Eeko156]

Originally Posted by mathjak107

there is nothing you can do ... should have had a longer lease is about all you can do ... how many increases do we see at the super market in a year ?

unless you live in a high cost area like ny where we have rent stabilization , it is what it is

I agree with this. There is nothing a renter can do about this except move to a less competitive housing area or save and buy a house.

Count on rent going up at every lease renewal.

[moneymkt]

And that's something I never knew about because my entire life no one in my family ever lived in a apartment. So I didn't know anything about apartment life such as rent increases, slumlords, ignored maintenance requests, noisy upstairs neighbors.

[Rkstar71]

Originally Posted by Teacher Terry

The same thing is happening in Nevada. The wages don’t support the increases.

This is the problem. Either rents need to be controlled or wages must go up. And/or taxes must go down.

[Taffee72]

Saw my former less than 400 sq ft apartment on Zillow and it's now being rented out for $525 more per month than when I was there two years ago.

[mathjak107]

Originally Posted by Rkstar71

This is the problem. Either rents need to be controlled or wages must go up. And/or taxes must go down.

you can't fix supply issues or demand issues by increasing wages .. these are controlled by demand . stop the over use or increase supply and prices come down .. this is economics 101 . increasing wages only increases demand and shortages . nothing is fixed when it is demand driven by higher wages.

oil is cheaper today then 12 years ago because what was scarce is now abundant , not because someone got a raise.

controlling rents only keeps investors away from investing in more housing increasing supply shortages . we have that issue in nyc..

the last pure rental building open to everyone that was not part of an affordable housing or low income project was the 1970's .

everything since has been either luxury so as not to be stabilized or they are part of 80/20 , affordable housing programs with capped incomes or low income projects .

not one rental building for all incomes was put up . everything was co-op or condo so as to avoid stabilization .

[chiluvr1228]

The Lee County, Florida area where I live has had the fastest rent increases in the United States. A 1 bedroom apartment that I had back in 2009 for $565 is now $1200 for all of 600 sq. ft. Last year my son was paying $1600 for a nice 2 bedroom 2 bath plus $25 a month pet fee. We bought have purchased our own places because rent is getting ridiculous. I don't know how a single person or a single parent can afford to rent unless they are a professional and most professionals buy their own place.

[moneymkt]

Im staying in my 295 square ft studio for 735 a month lol

[Eeko156]

Originally Posted by chiluvr1228

The Lee County, Florida area where I live has had the fastest rent increases in the United States. A 1 bedroom apartment that I had back in 2009 for $565 is now $1200 for all of 600 sq. ft. Last year my son was paying $1600 for a nice 2 bedroom 2 bath plus $25 a month pet fee. We bought have purchased our own places because rent is getting ridiculous. I don't know how a single person or a single parent can afford to rent unless they are a professional and most professionals buy their own place.

As a single, low income worker, I agree. I can see how incredibly easy it could be to become homeless (while working full-time).

[moneymkt]

Originally Posted by Eeko156

As a single, low income worker, I agree. I can see how incredibly easy it could be to become homeless (while working full-time).

That's why I had to downgrade from a one bedroom to a studio. Rent was going up like $45 every year. Atleast here its only $15 a year