We moved into a new apartment building in 2015 in NYC and signed a 1-year lease agreement (standard agreement with no riders). We was paying a decent amount for our 1-bed unit in rent per month. In November, an apartment on a higher floor became available which we wanted to transfer into for a small additional cost. The in-house leasing rep was very urgent in saying we should move in before the... [more]
We moved into a new apartment building in 2015 in NYC and signed a 1-year lease agreement (standard agreement with no riders). We was paying a decent amount for our 1-bed unit in rent per month. In November, an apartment on a higher floor became available which we wanted to transfer into for a small additional cost. The in-house leasing rep was very urgent in saying we should move in before the prices in the building rise and so we did.
Three days after we moved in, the building dropped the prices of all the 1-bed apartments in the building by around $300-$400 across the building. We complained to leasing about this and was pushed off, with them claiming they was not aware of the upcoming changes when we was looking to transfer - I disagree with that. Anyway we gave up fighting the point. However, we just checked the prices of the units in the building and they have dropped a further $100-$200 this week which enrages me.
Based on the prices on display today we're now paying $675 more than what we would have been if we had got the market price. We're locked in until November. This means over the year we will have paid around $7000 more than other tenants in the same unit.
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Response by ChasEMcD
about 10 years ago
Posts: 3
Member since: Jun 2012
He's just a leasing agent. Is he in a fiduciary relationship with you and bound to protect your interests? Is he your BFF? If none of those, why didn't you do your own due diligence? Why even blame him? He was just doing his job to get
every possible person into a rental apartment ASAP.. It's not his job to know or to give financial advise. He's not management, and he may not have any interest in or knowledge of market trends in the region or even in his own building. Learn from this to do your own research and not depend on other people's predictions (which usually are wrong).
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Response by ChasEMcD
about 10 years ago
Posts: 3
Member since: Jun 2012
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Response by Admin2009
about 10 years ago
Posts: 380
Member since: Mar 2014
Wow , that stinks , you got DeBlasio'd
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Response by fieldschester
about 10 years ago
Posts: 3525
Member since: Jul 2013
Rob, could you provide some more context - what neighborhood is this in? Was this new construction?
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Response by rc10000
about 10 years ago
Posts: 57
Member since: Nov 2008
You locked in at a certain price. The price you signed for was clearly worth it to you then and was something you could afford, so that's all that matters really. You can either obsess that you overpaid which will negatively impact your quality of life, or you can accept it, maybe with a lesson learned about doing your homework about where the market is headed before signing a lease, and not let it eat at you if only because otherwise you will make yourself unhappy.
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Response by nyc_sport
about 10 years ago
Posts: 813
Member since: Jan 2009
So, if prices went up by $1,000 after you sign the lease, should your rent increase too?
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Response by fieldschester
about 10 years ago
Posts: 3525
Member since: Jul 2013
My suggestion - try for a one time concession, e g a 1 month free extension on your lease. Getting a lower rent may be the most tough thing for them to agree to. But you'll have to be a bit of a PITA but not a jerk, ie be persistent but polite.
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Response by NYLondoner
almost 10 years ago
Posts: 1
Member since: Nov 2008
Don't bother talking to the leasing department again. Complain to the management office, point out you've been good tenants and ask them to do something for you to take away the bad taste. If you pay for a gym in the building, maybe they could waive the fee. Just be persistent and ask them to do something out of goodwill and recognition that the situation is unfair to you. Good luck.
He's just a leasing agent. Is he in a fiduciary relationship with you and bound to protect your interests? Is he your BFF? If none of those, why didn't you do your own due diligence? Why even blame him? He was just doing his job to get
every possible person into a rental apartment ASAP.. It's not his job to know or to give financial advise. He's not management, and he may not have any interest in or knowledge of market trends in the region or even in his own building. Learn from this to do your own research and not depend on other people's predictions (which usually are wrong).
Advice
Wow , that stinks , you got DeBlasio'd
Rob, could you provide some more context - what neighborhood is this in? Was this new construction?
You locked in at a certain price. The price you signed for was clearly worth it to you then and was something you could afford, so that's all that matters really. You can either obsess that you overpaid which will negatively impact your quality of life, or you can accept it, maybe with a lesson learned about doing your homework about where the market is headed before signing a lease, and not let it eat at you if only because otherwise you will make yourself unhappy.
So, if prices went up by $1,000 after you sign the lease, should your rent increase too?
My suggestion - try for a one time concession, e g a 1 month free extension on your lease. Getting a lower rent may be the most tough thing for them to agree to. But you'll have to be a bit of a PITA but not a jerk, ie be persistent but polite.
Don't bother talking to the leasing department again. Complain to the management office, point out you've been good tenants and ask them to do something for you to take away the bad taste. If you pay for a gym in the building, maybe they could waive the fee. Just be persistent and ask them to do something out of goodwill and recognition that the situation is unfair to you. Good luck.