What kind of rent increase should we expect?

At least 10%.

ask your neighbors--it's specific to individual landlords--some make the judgment that they will make more money squeezing tenants despite the resulting increase in turnover/vacancies--others prefer a stable, full building with good, long term tenants.

and some are just dickheads--your neighbors should be happy to exchange info

i am lucky to rent from a LL in the latter camp.

>i am lucky to rent from a LL in the latter camp.

the dickheads?

Mine was 13% last month. Got them down to 8% listing out problems, etc, blah, blah. Amazed on how many probably just sign it without countering.

Parker1205 - did you renew for 1 or 2 years? I have a feeling someone else in the building wants our apartment. Not sure how much negotiating power that will give me.

1 year. All my others have been 2 but every time I counter. If you reason with them on good tenant, pay on time etc the cost of keeping the apt open for even one month and redoing it is a loss for them. Even 2 weeks maybe a loss. That is unless you are REALLY under market value. We are still under market value by a few hundred but in the end it's a business transaction for you and the building. Do your research after you get your renewal. Check your area and offer similar units with better amentities.

Like mommy always said, the answer is no unless you ask.

I also agreed to 8% if they did a walkthrough and replaced a number of items that were old, paint, and touch up other items.

I just signed a new lease.,
1. 0% ,
B. Flat
iii. No increase

D. Most landlords want to keep the place occupado

So if your are a good tenet, ask

Yes brooksie, most landlords don't give a sh*t about rising real estate taxes, increased utility charges, increased union costs, and so on. All those expenditures remain completely stable over long stretches of time, so if a landlord is smart, they'll just say 'okey-dokey' when you say "I'm a good tenant, so you shouldn't raise my rent at all." Not to mention how strong the rental market is in terms of the supply/demand equation.

"I'm a good tenant, so you shouldn't raise my rent at all."

Riiiiiiiiiiight.

That's right MJ, I guess I have a smart Landlord.

Hahahah.

Or you live in a reasonably craptacular rental with only the minimal required upkeep and little (or no) services... does the rental building you're in even have a elevator, or is it a walk-up?!?

No MJ, it is a in luxury building. A building and neighborhood you probably could not afford.

Sorry your building is so "craptacular" and does not have the amenities you desire. But look on the bright side, walking up those stairs every day is good excersize and saving you money on the gym membership you can't afford.

Brooks2: You make no sense (as usual).

As I said above, we all know that NYC (particularly in the fancier nabes/buildings) has (strongly) rising real estate taxes, increased utility charges, increased union costs, and an increasingly compacted rental market is in terms of the supply/demand equation. We all know this.

And yet - you want us to believe that you live in a 'luxury' rental building, one with full services and in an evidently schmancy neighborhood to boot - but your 'landlord' (as if rental buildings have 'landlords' instead of leasing agents and management companies) takes such a personal interest in you, and 'likes' you so much - that despite this - they are simply not raising your rent at all, are willing to swallow the strongly increased operating expenses, and allow their own bottom line to suffer - just to keep you around.

You understand, that to those of us on street easy who are professionals, what an idiot you sound like - right?

you are all under the impression that as a tenant you are special. you are not. your ability to pay the rent is at least matched, and in many cases exceeded by more qualified individuals. you are at the mercy of your landlord and the real estate industry (who help create the conditions the landlords thrive in.

OP, did the "luxury" building you rented into have a leasing staff and was it "no fee"? They are usually the worst offenders at lease renewal.

Brooks2
about 15 hours ago
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I just signed a new lease.,
1. 0% ,
B. Flat
iii. No increase

Brooks2
about 15 hours ago
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D. Most landlords want to keep the place occupado

So if your are a good tenet, ask

brooksie still thinks it's 2009.

where is the 500 per square foot pricing for sale listings douche bag?

hey op, since mj is a "professional", i'd steer clear of anything he has to say.

as is clear, RE "professionals" are generally full of shlt, something MJ has a long history of validating here on SE.

check comps, spk to your neighbors about their experiences negotiating with your LL (yes, LL can mean managing agent/company---duhhh), and do your best. but dont forget that good tenants and light turnover have value to LL's. So you do have some of the cards in the game. There are some older threads on SE with very good advice on negotiating tactics for folks like you.

and, whatever you do, advocate for yourself. Steer clear of RE "professionals" esp those who tout that status to mean other than that they are scum!

Good luck.

yikes
1 minute ago
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hey op, since mj is a "professional", i'd steer clear of anything he has to say.

as is clear, RE "professionals" are generally full of shlt, something MJ has a long history of validating here on SE.

check comps, spk to your neighbors about their experiences negotiating with your LL (yes, LL can mean managing agent/company---duhhh), and do your best. but dont forget that good tenants and light turnover have value to LL's. So you do have some of the cards in the game. There are some older threads on SE with very good advice on negotiating tactics for folks like you.

and, whatever you do, advocate for yourself. Steer clear of RE "professionals" esp those who tout that status to mean other than that they are scum!

Good luck.

so rents aren't up?

>yikes
16 minutes ago
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hey op, since mj is a "professional", i'd steer clear of anything he has to say.
as is clear, RE "professionals" are generally full of shlt, something MJ has a long history of validating here on SE.
check comps, spk to your neighbors about their experiences negotiating with your LL (yes, LL can mean managing agent/company---duhhh), and do your best. but dont forget that good tenants and light turnover have value to LL's. So you do have some of the cards in the game. There are some older threads on SE with very good advice on negotiating tactics for folks like you.
and, whatever you do, advocate for yourself. Steer clear of RE "professionals" esp those who tout that status to mean other than that they are scum!
Good luck.

Brooks' claim of zero increase from a large landlord does strain his credibility.

It depends on the LL and property. Some send out renewals with a built-in negotiation cushion. Others send out a flat rate. Sometimes an owner may be looking to re-position a property, otherwise they are looking to manage for stability. Large owner or small owner? Finally what is the market doing (this year it is up)? All of these factors come into play. Never hurts to ask. Telling owner that you can't afford more is not a good strategy because LL's don't want tenants who cannot afford their apartment and tells them you don't have other options. In fact the opposite is true - tell them you can readily afford it - and may decide to do so elsewhere. Well qualified tenants are the hot girls in the room, not under-qualified ones.

Nagin
3 minutes ago
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It depends on the LL and property. Some send out renewals with a built-in negotiation cushion. Others send out a flat rate. Sometimes an owner may be looking to re-position a property, otherwise they are looking to manage for stability. Large owner or small owner? Finally what is the market doing (this year it is up)? All of these factors come into play. Never hurts to ask. Telling owner that you can't afford more is not a good strategy because LL's don't want tenants who cannot afford their apartment and tells them you don't have other options. In fact the opposite is true - tell them you can readily afford it - and may decide to do so elsewhere. Well qualified tenants are the hot girls in the room, not under-qualified ones.

22 comments

overstating it big time. well qualified tenants abound in this city. dime a dozen.

>overstating it big time. well qualified tenants abound in this city. dime a dozen.

Sounds like landlords can cut out the middlemen and they'll have no problems. Not a good situation for rental brokers.

Granted NYC isn't Dayton, Ohio - but there's no shortage of RE 'pros' spouting crap. Do large building put standard annual increases in the mail without hesitation? Of course. Are these increases negotiable? Sometimes. Is there still value to the landlord or seller in tenants who are responsible inhabitants who never bounce checks, or buyers who make an all-cash offer and actually show up to close with the money? Of course. Is seeing an apartment go vacant for even a single month a consideration? Um .. at these prices .. you'd better believe it is. Listing agents aren't the ones holding the bag; obviously it's all about commission to them. Generally speaking this is a hot market .. but even in a hot market you shouldn't believe everything the 'professionals' say ..even if they're buying it themselves.

No landlord is going to agree to a 0% rent increase in this market unless the tenant is already overpaying or the apartment is tough to rent. And the logic that a month's vacancy would offset the benefit of any rent increase is oversimplifying the issue - not increasing the rent this year sets the landlord back every year until the tenant vacates. It's the same reason why in a bad market, landlords prefer to give away a 1-month rental abatement vs. cutting prices - it reduces the net effective rent at lease signing, but not the base rent.

buster20- I respectfully disagree. Your scenario is as much an over-generalization as the 'losing one month's rent' is over-simplification. Many landlords/leasing co's raise rent every year as a matter of standard practice. Others would prefer the consistency of keeping the same tenant and not having to list, refinish, or renegotiate a contract. There's a difference between more corporate-structured large apartment buildings and individual landlord-tenant relationships. And 'tough to rent' can be a relative description .. anything that falls in to the 'not rented within a week or two on the market' can be a consideration. It just isn't as 'automatic' as some would make it out to be .. even in this city.

Hey Yikes, you asshat.

When I said we're all "professionals" I did not mean we're all in real estate. I meant that we are all 'professional' people from various walks of life (except you and brooks, obviously) who clearly understand the simple basics of the current real estate situation in NYC, and the supply/demand equation in prime luxury rentals and nabes.

I've never worked in the real estate profession, or even anything closely aligned to it. But for it's worth, stereotyping any group of people "...as is clear, RE "professionals" are generally full of shlt..." is one of the most horrid things anyone can do.

Except when I would say something like "...as is clear, yikes and brooks are complete douchebags..." And like I believe that brooks has no rent increase this year in a luxury building in a prime location with tons of union employees and yoy rising costs just because his landlord 'likes' him so much. Riiiiiiiight.....

MJ

a real PRO!

asshat makes me think youd like your head in my ass--find a new fantasy, thx

@Lo888 - your position may be harmed by the "year and a half" you mentioned. If you first rented in Oct/Nov, that is a slower period of the year for rentals whereas now you are closing in on the fastest period of the year and market rates for "like" locations will go up and down with seasonality.

We also got all our leases in the winter, but I never let a landlord talk me into an 18 month lease because I knew that increased their leverage in a renegotiation.

tpushbklyn, I certainly admit that my opinion is really just based on intuition. I have a very hard time believing any landlord would pass up an opportunity to raise rent during a widely publicized prime rental market. Renters have very little leverage over the landlord right now - a renter can either pay more for the current apartment or more for another apartment. While the landlord may bear some temporary pain from a vacant unit, there's a real cost to moving for the tenant, too - broker fees, moving expenses, time, stress etc. Low inventory for sale and tighter credit have made the alternative to renting, buying, even harder to achieve for most renters - all widely discussed. Landlords have their tenants over a barrel...

By "tough to rent" I meant inventory that is unattractive regardless of the state of the market - walk-ups, railroad flats etc.

greensdale
about 3 hours ago
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>overstating it big time. well qualified tenants abound in this city. dime a dozen.

Sounds like landlords can cut out the middlemen and they'll have no problems. Not a good situation for rental brokers.

yet here i sit, huge corner office, more money than last year, and the year before that. wonder why?

buster20 - Your intuition is probably largely correct, particularly as it pertains to Manhattan which is a rental phenomenon unto itself. My experience in the more desirable areas of Brooklyn has reflected a greater range of circumstances. Perhaps I misunderstood in assuming this post wasn't limited to addressing just Manhattan.

now that rent stabilization is largely irrelevant LL's are less cocky about losing tenants.
Under RS they could jack the rent at end of ex lease, but also ea time tenant changed.
Now that most RS apts have gone fair mkt, and are fully priced or close, vacancies simply cost the LL $$.
Turnover generally requires a freshening of apt as well, where a good non-complainer tenant does not.

tpushbklyn - Brooklyn is different. Our brooklyn rent has increased 0% since 2002 & no that is not a TYPO! We have not had a single increase in 11 years. We are on a month-to-month and sadly the LL is selling the building so we can only guess what is coming down the pike in mid-to-late 2013. I have to admit the place is in pretty bad shape (where we didn't paint outselves or repair at our own expense, the place is in bad shape). So presuming we stay, I will certainly ask to have fallen ceilings fixed, fresh paint, my "own" mailbox and maybe even have the lead removed for my kid's safety! Is is cool to insist that the intercom work? We are on the 4th floor of a walk up so now we have to go all the way downstairs to see who is buzzing at the door. That NYTimes article about a 7 year having acid thrown in his face back in 1970's has caused me to stop having my 10 year old answer the door.

What's cheaper in the long run -- a rent increase or the Massachusetts electroshock therapy school for lead paint-fried children who bang their heads and bite themselves?

>I've never worked in the real estate profession, or even anything closely aligned to it. But for it's worth, stereotyping any group of people "...as is clear, RE "professionals" are generally full of shlt..." is one of the most horrid things anyone can do.

Horrid? This ranks with murder or rape or North Korea or Iran or Syria?

>yet here i sit, huge corner office, more money than last year, and the year before that. wonder why?

Because you say one thing to renters and a other thing to landlords.

so far between close acquaintances the most i've seen this year is 3% and that's me (and my landlord has 1,000s of apts so i think they can gauge the market and can definitely deal with a vacancy on a cash-flow basis, if necessary). ok not entirely true, someone got a 10% but they are way below rate and haven't had an increase in 7 yrs

"yet here i sit, huge corner office, more money than last year, and the year before that. wonder why?"

Duncecap on, forced to face the corner until your timeout is up, almost catching up to the poverty line and then they increase the number a bit the next year.

So sad, no_cojones.

Chose to believe whatever you desire MJ, but my 0 rent increase this year is the truth. The only idiot here is you. I guess that makes you a professional idiot. Haha lol omg ur a douche MJ

AvUWS - you are absolutely correct. I negotiated at the time but didn't really have much of a choice. Tried to make it 2 1/2 years so he could still get s summer end but that didn't fly either. At the time we were looking to buy something so we didn't push quite as hard because we thought we'd be leaving. Now our circumstances have changed somewhat and we are actually happy where we are so we'd like to stay. We may be below market slightly but I also fear that they have listed the next size up apartment for way over market. It hasn't been long enough for them to realise it and they may peg our rent to that.

Looked for other threads on negotiating rent. They seem to be 3 years old and things were very different then.

>but my 0 rent increase this year is the truth.

How much was your last increase?

Just started 2nd year in pad HB

Brooks2
about 13 hours ago
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Chose to believe whatever you desire MJ, but my 0 rent increase this year is the truth. The only idiot here is you. I guess that makes you a professional idiot. Haha lol omg ur a douche MJ

bullshit.

greensdale
about 16 hours ago
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>yet here i sit, huge corner office, more money than last year, and the year before that. wonder why?

Because you say one thing to renters and a other thing to landlords.

actually, i am known for being incredibly forthright.

jh10 - What's the square footage on that corner office? Southern exposure? Eat-in kitchenette? Interested in selling?

>actually, i am known for being incredibly forthright.

In which case your failed logic seems to escape you.

tpushbklyn
40 minutes ago
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jh10 - What's the square footage on that corner office? Southern exposure? Eat-in kitchenette? Interested in selling?

i guess it's a little less than 200 sq ft. southern/western exposure. eating at one's desk is disgusting and plebian.

greensdale
20 minutes ago
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>actually, i am known for being incredibly forthright.

In which case your failed logic seems to escape you.

i have no idea what you are talking about cunterberg.

>eating at one's desk is disgusting and plebian.

You are so prissy Jim Hores. No wonder you chose to marry the maid.

>i have no idea what you are talking about cunterberg.

It's been long evident that you don't understand.

So Jim, what kind of rent increases are your landlords putting into place this year?

Lo888, It depends on the number of vacancies in the building and how long they have been empty at the advertised rent. If no more than 2-3 percent vacancy and average vacancy no longer than 2 months, they have no reason to cut the advertised price. They will likely give you an offer to renew at a couple of percent less than similar for goodwill.

"They will likely give you an offer to renew at a couple of percent less than similar for goodwill."

This makes sense to me. I wonder if it makes sense to that professional douchebag MJ......

Brooks, If I may add, a few % less than advertised may not factor in negotiation the new renter may be able to do. MJ is right about landlords trying to maximize their gains and cover their increased cost as a minimum. However, the market has the bear it. Happy for you that you were able to keep your rent unch.

greensdale
about 17 hours ago
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So Jim, what kind of rent increases are your landlords putting into place this year?

whatever I tell them.

>whatever I tell them.

So, low this year?

upperwestrenter
about 3 hours ago
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funny - I rent on the UWS, nice enough building, sweet 2 BR apartment.
And guess what my rent went up this month?
0.00%

so who knows...some landlords want tenants who leave them alone and pay on time...others could care less and will take any jerkoff, so long as they can raise the rent up.

good luck figuring it out without living there

So keep listening to those professional douchbags... Funny how the insecure always feel the need to claim how important they are. Mastonjones you clearly are a douchebag

It all adds up.
2010 1% increase, minus 1 month free negotiated concession and some minor renovation.
2011 no change, we had a two year lease.
2012 7.5% increase though they asked for a lot more.
2013 5% increase.

No no no hoodia - you're completely wrong.

According to Brooks2, all you need to do is tell your landlord how valuable as a tenant. Based on this alone, your landlord will not increase your rent, ever.

In fact, Brooks2 says he lives in a prime location full service luxury building - perhaps he'll just message you his address, and then you can move to that building too - just tell the landlord how good a tenant you are, and your rent will never be raised! I mean, I'm sure if the landlord does that for Brooks2, they must be doing it for all the other tenants of the building.

It's the one magical wonderful gumdrop building from happy land on Lollypop Lane in all of NYC that doesn't raise it rents, as long as the tenants simply tell the landlord how valuable they are.

Yup me and upperwestsiderenter too douchbag

For a "professional" masonhomes, you don't have a clue

2010: 7% increase
2011: no change (two-year lease)
2012: 10% increase + broker fee + moving expense. My old apt tried to increase my rent by 26% and were unwilling to negotiate.
2013: 5% increase.

Rent is now 39% of my take-home pay.

Dope

Brooks2: You're such a douchebag.

9d8b7988045e4953a882, you aren't supposed to give out your bitcoin pass code.