month-to-month option

m-t-m is just what it is: m-t-m. What you describe would give you, the tenant, all the benefits of a lease w/o the obligations!

Are you serious? In a word, NO.

If you do month-to-month the landlord has the right to raise your rent, not renew your lease, whatever--on a month-to-month basis. Period. If you want the security of a yearly lease, you have to suck it up and sign for a year. What makes you think it's ok for you to be completely protected while the landlord's left with his ass swinging in the wind? C'mon. Get real.

Of course, there's no harm in talking to your LL. If you are a good tenant he may be willing to work with you somehow... though do NOT simply refuse to sign a new lease--that'll likely get the eviction wheels turning.

Yes, I have seen something similar done. It would be a one-year lease, but with an option for you to terminate with 2-month's notice. A landlord may agree to these terms if you agree to pay the current rent, which is above market. All renters who are renewing for a standard one-year lease in the next couple of months should expect a discount. When negotiating either the discount or the option to terminate, make sure that you have support for the change in market rate, in the way of comps. Check rental websites, or if it's a large management company, call the office anonymously and ask them how much similar units are going for.

Here's the info... My lease just expired and it did not have any language in it with respect to a renewal term. If you continue paying rent and the landlord continues to accept it, you are a month to month tenant. The landlord must now give you at least 30 days written notice in the event that he/she wishes to terminate the lease. I am a lawyer (not a real estate lawyer) and had done some investigation but checked with a real estate lawyer I work with who confirmed that this was the case. I am a good tenant and have a good relationship with my landlord. I wrote him an e-mail and explained to him that I was thinking of buying an apartment in the 6 to 18 months and wanted the flexibility. I also mentioned that if I was to sign a lease, I would be seeking a rent concession. He wrote back that he was fine with month to month at the old lease rate or would be willing to discuss a rent concession if we wanted to sign up to something longer term.

Yes, spqsydney, that's another good option. Although in your case, you are a holdover tenant and the landlord can choose to stop accepting rent checks from you at any time. After refusing rent for 30 days he could then serve you with notice of holdover petition (first step toward eviction). It may be a safer option to negotiate a clause in a renewal lease that allows you to leave with a certain amount of advance notice, depending on your situation.

nyc212 and Squid are wrong on this one. There is a significant amount of flexibility for this type of arrangement now, and even when the rental market was good.

Good luck pwr

>>nyc212 and Squid are wrong on this one<<

No, not wrong. If you do a true month-to-month, then your landlord does indeed have the ability to raise your rent at the end of each one-month term. A yearly lease with the option to terminate with notice is a completely different deal. Please do not confuse the two.

Yes, there is absolutely flexibility, especially in this climate (hence my follow-up post above), BUT the landlord is still going to want certain assurances. The OP seems to expect a concession-free deal. That's not gonna happen.

thanks guys. I think people are misreading this. The concession is that the rent stays at the current rate (which is prob slightly above market now) and that I consistently pay on time, am a model tenant and mgmt co doesnt incur costs to re-rent the apartment. Sounds like I just need the option to terminate in any new rental arrangement. this is really helpful. given their sarcastic responses, looks like the first two responses (nyc212 and Squid) seemed to miss the spirit of the question (getting flexibility at the current rental rate).

pwr, I wasn't being sarcastic, I was being very straight-forward. There's no 'spirit' in posts--it's just words on a screen. Your post seems clear enough to me and my original reply stands.

All this said, yes--if you are a good tenant with an established on-time track record, then you should be able to negotiate something mutually agreeable with your landlord. A two-month termination option is pretty standard and shouldn't be difficult for you to achieve, considering your history.

Once again, people will believe whatever they want to believe. Good luck. All I ask is that you refrain from calling me uninformed/wrong when I am providing you with accurate information. Just ignore my advice, and we'd both be happy. Thanks.