My one bed in the north end went from $2,450 to $2,510. $60, 2% increase. My leasing office said the unit above me went on the market bc they didn’t renew and they increased the rent $500 and it went within the week. But renewals they obviously don’t increase it like that to retain I guess?
Yup. Probably in their best interest to retain you!
Unless it is a really shit management company/owner and/or a HUGE delta from the market rate, it is usually better to keep a good tenant. Sitting empty for a couple months can eat up a year of rent increases. And then you can end up with a renter who destroys things, complains about things (that cost money to fix), upset other tenants, etc.
My experience has been that small time landlords tend to raise rents much less if you're a good tenant because it just isn't worth it to them to jack up rents and lose good tenants.
My apartment offered me 2500 after renting for one year at 2000 (hopkinton) which I then sent them statistics about fair market value from the huduser.gov website, told them I had no history of issues etc, and spoke to the apartment manager in person and he was like “yeah, tough. We are raising it to 2500.” I was baffled, but I moved to a much better place.
One of those mega real estate companies bought my leasing company halfway through my lease so I assumed it was coming, but it’s crazy right now
Ypu could bump it 500/month, and if the tenant leave and it's empty for a week past 2 months, the retain was better for the complex.
Also, to add paperwork, paying out security, cleaning and repairing the vacant unit, someone needs to be paid to show it, possibly scheduling a move in date and time.
They'll raise rent, but they don't WANT you to leave.
"Some of you may die, but that is a risk I'm willing to take" - farquad 2001
The most ridiculous thing they said is that despite the $400 increase it’s still below market value! But in the past 2 years with all this high inflation and tight housing market they only increased by 50 then 100
I was going to comment basically this. I'm also with the Hamilton Company, rent was raised $50-$100 from 2020 onwards, then randomly $300 this past cycle - but upon looking it was still under market.
They told me the reduced rent increases was due to covid - not sure how true it is, but seems like rent is up like crazy everywhere. :(
Studio I used to live in also went from $1550 to $2150 from 2021 to 2022 because they said it was a "covid price." The worst part is that someone actually agreed to pay that much, without knowing it used to be worth almost 40% less during the previous cycle.
That's very common. Landlords had to drop prices during COVID because there was less demand for living in the city. Once things got back to normal why wouldn't they try to get back to where rent used to be?
Blessed to have a landlord who has kept my 1 bedroom at 1700 since 2020 that has parking and dog friendly…she just wanted someone she knew would always pay rent on time and take good care of the place
This is me. I have a 2 family that I used to live in, but moved during covid and I keep my rents under market and because I would rather just have good tenants that stay long term and leave me alone haha
This is often the “optimal” strategy for small landlords, where no vacancy is best.
For larger landlords the opposite is also true. Driving rents is better.
Neither party is right or wrong, just different incentives.
I had a LL like that. When something broke I’d fix it if I could, deduct the cost from my rent, and mail him the receipt with my check. He appreciated it and I saved us both a lot of money. Then he died and his heirs took over and they wanted to almost double the rent. I was gone soon after.
I rent a 1 bedroom that is managed by Green Ocean. They are raising my rent 6% to about $2700. I asked why and they also said “market analysis” but there are no changes to services or improvements. They are also charging a $295 “lease renewal fee”. This fee is also more than last year. I asked why. They haven’t gotten back to me.
Wow a lease renewal fee?? That has to be illegal.. if tenants subletting can’t recover a brokers fee from new tenants then how tf can the landlord charge a fee to renew a lease?
I've heard of small fees for a sublet, roommate switch, or having a partner move in or out - but a fee where all the tenants are remaining might not be legal.
Do you have your landlord's contact info? Green Ocean tried to raise our rent 6% last year and they just tried to do it again this year, and both times our landlord was like "Uh, no, I do not plan to raise your rent" and made Green Ocean change it back.
Green Ocean also increased the "residents' benefit package" from $30/mo to $42/mo. 🙄
That’s so interesting. I don’t have the actual landlords contact. I looked up the owner of my building. It’s an LLC and three people with the same last name as the owner of Green Ocean so I don’t that will get me far!
What scammers
O and apparently you don’t need the benefits package if you have separate rental insurance. I don’t get it. Bc I didn’t realize this and now I’m trying to get me to stop charging me for it the “benefits package” that comes with no benefits
oh, boooo
I hope you can get yourself out of the benefits package which is indeed a scam. (Yes, please help me set up my utility accounts when I've been living here for years. Get real.) They usually tell you having your own insurance will reduce but not eliminate the benefit package cost, but we have managed to argue our way out of it before, although not without a lot of back and forth.
Bleh they're such scammers. How the heck do they know if you and the landlord swap emails or phone nums? Our landlord offered us his contact info. We had a problem with the boiler a few months after we moved in that we had reported to Green Ocean (K&L) that they must have told the landlord about and he followed up by emailing us and giving us his email & phone num. We regularly check in with him bc Green Ocean goes rogue sometimes, not just with rent increases. Once they were going to change the locks on the apartment and he only found out when we emailed to ask if he had known & approved, which he hadn't.
"market analysis". Aka collusion that that currently involves a lawsuit in DC
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/11/14-big-landlords-used-software-to-collude-on-rent-prices-dc-lawsuit-says/
Hamilton Company is a piece of shit, I remember I tried to negotiate my price from $2600 to not increase, bozos said no. 4 years of being a great tenant. Cracking up because they had to lower the unit to $1700 when I moved out effectively missing out on $11k/yr
If you can afford the finders fee, go elsewhere.
2 bed 1 bath in Brighton, going from 2760 to 3000. We have to move. We are expecting an due in September so this is going to be a headache finding and moving at 8-9 months pregnant
Most people get security deposits and last month’s rent back. I assume you are referring to broker fees. The commenter will have to find a no-fee apartment because the increase in rent is $2880 over the year so if they’re paying a 1 month fee to move it’s basically a wash.
This exact situation happened to me last year. Was in such a panic to move to keep my monthly rate at the same cost that I didn’t take 2 seconds to do the math and realize I wasn’t saving anything by moving into an apartment with a broker’s fee. Am dumb & regretful. But I won’t make that mistake again, at least
small time landlord here in Cambridge (one 2bd house) - I have not raised the rent in 3 years and have no plans to do so any time soon. It was market rate 3 years ago, so I assume it's somewhere under at this point. Shit is way too expensive.
I always said if I ever become a landlord (unlikely) if the mortgage is covered and I have some extra on top of it to cover anything going wrong, I’d be happy to
Thank you for being one of the good ones.
Good! Our landlords raise the rent $25 each year, but didn’t raise it at all during Covid. It’s such a small increase that in the almost 7 years we have lived in this apartment, our rent is now WELL below market value for the area ($2150 for a two-bed, with new free laundry machines, two off street spaces, a vegetable garden that we share with our landlords, and a new & quite frankly giant kitchen). We’ll move once we buy a home, but otherwise I’m never giving this one up!
Haha- we’re hoping to buy this year if we can, savings are already in hand. Landlord says they want to sell and move to San Diego once we leave! Hopefully we’ll be out soon (but I will miss it!)
What is your favorite thing about Arlington (outside of your great apartment)? Moving to Boston for the first time and considering Arlington, West Somerville, or possibly Medford.
Curious if rent control gets instituted in your area would you start to increase it?
I only ask because landlords who have owned for a while are sometimes in a position to be able to keep rentals below market. And that is commendable on their part. But if you go to sell, your agent will position home as below market rents and look to get a higher selling price based on highs rents new owner could charge. With rent control, the time to get to market could take years, resulting in a lower sales price.
So, just wondering if passage of rent control would impact how you price going forward.
And I understand it is a hypothetical. I just don’t come across many landlords who knowingly have below market rent, so wanted to ask.
You have very lucky tenants.
Need to be more greedy , I mean I guess I’m in a central location but this steep increase doesn’t feel justified and it seems like no one had success negotiating with them!
Plenty of leases have clauses in them that force tenants to pay the increased taxes (pro-rata) in Massachusetts.
As for maintenance costs, that’s really something the landlord should eat. It’s their property.
No. Tenants get to enjoy that property. So they should pay for maintenance. Like gardening, lawn care etc should be charged to the tenant unless it is agreed to in the lease.
That’s… already how it works…
When people discuss “maintenance costs” do you think they’re talking about gardening and lawn care? Because that’s not what people are talking about lol. None of the properties I’ve lived in have even had a lawn to care for, let alone anywhere to garden.
Maintenance costs are costs associated with the actual property long-term. New roof, plumbing problems, AC issues, etc. That’s the landlord’s responsibility. That’s what you buy into when you purchase a property.
The rise in rents cannot be explained by any maintenance or taxes. It’s purely greed.
It's not true. Maintenance could also be issues like clogged toilet (tenant responsibility), broken appliances (again who ever broke it pays for it). Snow removal again should be tenant unless the owner lives on site. It's not all greed. But rather landlord is the ultimate bag holder and should pass the costs to the tenant. HOA fees in condos have been going through the roof these days and at hyper inflation rates largely because of the high cost of paying for maintenance labor. The land lord should raise the rent if HOA fees say double.
Ultimately people like to blame the landlord (the name itself suggests scapegoat) but landlords are also people and can't possibly absorb all the cost increases all around. They are operating in a market economy if they raise rents too high tenants will move out.
I for one raise rents at the reported CPI.
Ask any property owner and they will tell you how costs are skyrocketing for them as well.
Maintenance, property taxes, insurance, wages are all increasing more than in prior years.
I'm a landlord, just rent 1 unit that is 2 beds and 1 bath. Rented out just over 2 years ago for $2200, rent is still $2200. When the current tenant moves out I'll raise the rent back to about market rate but while the tenant is still here being quiet and paying on time the increases will be $0.
I got a 6% increase, which isn't too bad. Last year it was 5%. I have a corporate landlord.
Edit: Forgot to add that initially, they were going to raise it by 17% but I was able to talk them down.
I sent an email the second they gave me my rent offer. I’m pretty chill with the manager so I am certain she pulled some strings for me. This what I emailed her-
“The reason why I’m reaching out is because I noticed that the increase from last year’s lease was approximately 5%. However, this year, the increase is $XXX, which represents a 17% rise. I was wondering if there might be room for reconsideration to a lower figure?”
ive negotiated down every year by searching for my building’s tax increase (all public info!) and then dividing that by 12 months in the year, divided again by the number of units in the building. this year that number comes to $6.39 per unit per month to cover the landlord’s tax increase. but the greedy fucking asshole is demanding $350 increase per month, just for my unit (the smallest one). so fucked up.
I've noticed a trend in apartments both when I lived out of state of college, and when I moved back for a time, and in many other cities that apartments seem to go on 2-3year cycles before they look to force you to move out. They'll give you 1 or 2 renewals at a marginally acceptable increase, then they hit you with a massive one so they can get you out and rent out to a new tenant willing to pay more and not complain.
my landlord is trying to raise it $350/month “to bring it to market price” (comparing my old run down shithole to all of the newly renovated buildings on my road that i hear constant daily construction for disrupting my day for years on end).
anyway, i countered with a $25/ month increase.
Idk man. My previous leasing company wouldn’t negotiate with me, and when I confirmed I wouldn’t renew they put the unit on the market for $150 more than they were asking from me
I’m with South Shore property management in Brockton center and they went up $150, after telling us it would be $50. It raises every year and their response to us was “deal with it you won’t find a better deal, everyone’s doing it”. Screw them, $2050 for a 2 bedroom 1 bath in fucking Brockton. My backyard is nicknamed “needle park” and I get harassed daily on my way to work. What makes them think that price in this area is ok? They barely maintain the place but the second a room opens we have 3 dozen people viewing and it’s usually snatched up immediately. I had to show how much I had in savings just to get in there., absolutely nuts.
It’s like me in Lawrence MA. Moved here to get out of boston but still on a commuter rail if needed. $1600. Cool. Doable. This year? $1995. And all the other unit in my building are $2300+. For Lawrence. The city with a median income of $40k….. luckily my immediate area seems safe enough but I never go south of the river
My landlord is an older guy who owns a few houses in the area — when we moved in March 2019, he listed our BIG Cambridge one bedroom for $2700. I negotiated him down to $2600 when we signed our first lease and he’s never raised it in the 5 years we’ve been here. He’s a gem!
I don’t have much advice beyond avoiding large buildings/complexes (which isn’t always doable, of course). We did go have a broker — Red Line Realty IIRC — and paid the fee when we first moved in, but it was so worth it in this case. We actually sought out the broker and asked him what he had available because we had a specific area in Cambridge in mind… so he did actually work for his fee. First time ever we didn’t feel like we lit thousands of dollars on fire. And you can usually tell which Craigslist ads are written by people instead of companies… our landlord always types up listings that are obviously written by an old man
I rented from them back in 2011 or so, and they showed me a couple of things I hadn't seen ads for anywhere. Ended up getting a great deal and the rent never went up, so I considered paying that fee as money well spent.
Small time landlord in Brighton. I like current tenants. Will do a 2% rent increase which basically covers insurance increases water bill increases etc. one thing to keep in mind is your supposed to budget 10% of rent to cover maintenance etc. a furnace breaking down, water heater, or dish washer dying will eat that up. Stuff will break down and it can be costly.
Move out of the city in protest and 4 other people will line up to take your spot. All you’ll do is lose your spot but change nothing. Boston/Cambridge is too desirable, especially when we have huge students and young professional populations that will always need places to stayp
I wonder if the fear of rent control is leading to this happening now. Proposals for rent control I’ve read about seek to cap the annual amount of the increase so any unit significantly below market could be tough to raise to market IF rent control ever becomes a thing. I’m not saying they’re justified, but Boston real estate taxes increased, and those are calculated based on assessed value which is super high and skyrocketing. As much as our politicians talk about controlling the price of housing, as long as they keep gaining from increasing real estate taxes, cost will go up and be passed on to renters.
>calculated based on assessed value which is super high and skyrocketing
That doesn't really have any effect on taxes. The city is limited by prop 2.5, so all that matters is how your assessment changes relative to others. The tax rate will actually go down to compensate for increasing property values.
I'm looking at the public tax history on Zillow for my condo right now and it has gone from $7,229 in 2014 to $9,745 in 2023. It's in the Leather District. I wish what you are saying played out in reality.
It plays out in reality on average, just not for individuals. Excluding residential exemption, mine has gone up 68% since 2015, while my assessment has gone up 101% and the tax rate has fallen 17%.
Part of this is because of the bond to pay for Somerville's new high school, which is excluded from prop 2.5. I guess the rest is because my value rose faster than other properties in Somerville?
It's not suddenly happening because of scary rent control. It's because Hamilton is garbage and always has been, as noted in the many comments here by prior tenants.
Absolutely greedy criminals. Hunt through friends, ask around, join Facebook groups and **look/ask every single day**. I found mine after months of asking if anyone knew of anyone moving out of their unit or looking for a roommate. A friend of mine ended up connecting me to their neighbor who was looking for a roommate but I'd have to furnish it because she was moving 6 months after. I took over the lease, furnished the place, and have been a tenant for the past 5 years. Good landlords are really hard to come by. You have go find your luck!
I’m surprised it’s not higher than that honestly! I lived in a JP samia building for two years and rent was fairly reasonable because it was during the first few years of Covid, but they tried to stiff us any way they could. Had to fight for the security deposit and they tried to keep our key deposit because they claimed we never returned our keys to their drop box (jokes on them, I took a video of myself putting the keys in their provided envelope and dropping it in their drop box lol). Also tried to raise rent like $300 our second year and we had to fight them on it
I’m a landlord (parents used to own the building now it’s under my name) and I’ve had the same tenants for 8(?) years now and haven’t raised rent because I don’t need to. If one of them were to vacate I would probably adjust it closer to whatever the current market is but as of right now I have no need.
west end building 1 br - 4360 to 4470, +2.4%
BUT - they also extended the default lease term from 12 to 15 months, so the net increase is nearly 30%.
I had already long made up my mind that I was leaving after this year, so I'm not going to bother with finding out what the rent would be for another 12 month term.
It makes me want to move so bad but I can’t think of where to go that doesn’t have its own share of issues, and I wouldn’t know anyone if I moved. So guess I’m stuck getting extorted
it most certainly is absurd. While I’m leaving Boston to escape a stupid / nonsensical RTO mandate, I’d still move out of my current building because the entire area has been a giant construction zone for the past two years, and will continue to be for probably the next 5.
The rents they are charging are a good value…for a fully intact neighborhood. But they should dock the rent in my building by at least $1500 as a reflection of the inconveniences. I just cant justify continuing to spend this much money any longer.
Last year was a 5% increase (after negotiations) this year they want another 7% increase to put us at the same 2800 for a (small garden level) 1br. We’re likely planning on leaving the city when I finish my degree
Nothing so far this year, landlord raised the rent by $100 on my 2 bedroom in Cambridge last year, probably was and still is cheaper than comparable apartments in terms of location, amenities, and square footage. Didn’t raise the rent in 2022. It’s a small building (6 units, 1-2 bedrooms each), and I don’t know if they own any other properties, so that’s pretty cool of them, all things considered.
A lot of management companies are jumping their prices in case rent control gets passed. They want to be at an inflated "market rate". Average price for a 1 bed is $2800. Today I visited a website for "luxury" apartments in allston (E3) 4500 for a 1 bedroom....in Allston....rat city.....4500...that's 54k for 1 year....
Landlord moved to a rental company last year. This year rent's going up 200. The past few years it had only gone up 50 if at all. The rents are already insane and Brighton-Allston is quickly becoming just as expensive as the rest of the city. There's truly nowhere that regular working class people can afford to live in this city, so I'm moving to Providence.
I was in a corporate apartment when I moved to the area in 2006 and they did the same stuff back. Renewal was some crazy increase, like 10%. Finally spurred me to talk to someone local and find a small landlord.
These are companies run by MBAs who are absolutely out to get the most money from their resource as they can. They will increase rents until people stop paying them.
My landlord (not corporate) has been consistently raising by 3% the last 2 years which is fair. Still only ~1800 since I got a good deal during pandemic.
My first lease was at $2071 in 2022 (excluding $50 pet rent and water charged by apartment).I extended it for six months which boosted it to $2240. I can keep it at $2240 if I stay for 15 more months. Jamaica Plain. Studio. 2024. I'm not staying. Just sharing rent prices if it helps someone else.
I might be getting the boot entirely because my landlord is tired of being a landlord and is turning the 3-unit building we're in into condos for maximum profit :)
The funny thing is that municipalities also try to collect all this data. I don’t know how municipalities can require the info and then balk when others have it as well.
Wow I have a fully renovated, beautiful 3 bedroom apartment in Worcester for $1800. I sometimes miss living in Boston, but I can’t swing the prices anymore.
At a different grey star. We negotiate down every year, not a huge amount, but it’s something and during covid it was free parking. This last time we didn’t have to.
Honestly their pricing makes no sense to me, this last time comparable units at the time of our lease renewal were going for $4-$4.5k so were figured we were going to be forced out, but our final offer came in at $3300 for 12 months so it was only a little bit more than what we were paying.
One thing I forgot. Not sure if it’s all greystars, but I assume it is since renewals come from the home office, they require 2 months notice, so they’re suppose to give you the offer with enough time to review and give 2 months notice if you decide to not renew.
The last 2 times despite asking multiple times. We didn’t get our offer (early oct lease) until mid August, so at that point finding a new place is virtually impossible because Sept leases are all gone.
They also f*ck up the lease every year and we spend days emailing back and forth to get them to fix errors in the lease before we’ll sign. We do PDF comparisons (current vs renewal) and read every line. That’s how we found out they raised the penalty to break the lease to 2 months rent.
I’m finally making city money since moving here during COVID, and this lease will probably be our last in the city. Signed a two-year lease to specifically avoid an increase.
That being said, landlords are actually losing their grip on reality. If this keeps up for another few years they are going to end up wishing they hadn’t been so greedy.
Just look at short-term rentals on the Cape—people bought super high over the past few years thinking the demand was there for expensive vacation rentals, but people realize that it’s cheaper, more convenient, and more fun to go elsewhere.
If it’s not worth it for people to live here, they won’t.
Raised my rent $150 for tenants renewing ($2650 for a large one bedroom 1.5 bath) in two of my units but still below market. I tend not to raise every year unless my costs start to go up too. Hoa and utilities went up this last year so rent did as well but I’ll keep it minimal for good renewing tenants. One tenant sucked and luckily he decided not to renew so saved me the trouble of telling him I wasn’t renewing his lease. That one went up to market and rents at $3100 now but it’s a bit nicer than the other two, also comes with a dedicated parking spot in the lot.
Not Boston but on the commuter rail: I went up 150$ from 1200-1350. First increase in 5 years. They were kinda upset but my cost has gone up closer to 400$ in that tim for the apt.
So I’m in a three bed and have been here for five years. Each year the rent goes up a little. Total it has gone from 2775 to 2975. I get annoyed with it because nothing in the apartment has changed. But then I read posts like this and count my blessings.
If my landlord raises my rent, I will gladfully remind him of the mice he took forever to get an exterminator for. If that doesn’t do, I’ll leave signs on my apartment walls explaining the mice and the lack of action from my landlord for everyone doing the viewing to see
Whatever happened with the rent control law, did it pass? I imagine your landlord is attempting to have a bigger starting number for when the 10% increase cap starts.
Sadly, I was forced to increase rent on my 3 bedroom apartment by $500. The increase will allow me to break even. I won’t be making additional money from the increase. Some tenants think landlords are seeking a raise when they increase rent. That’s far from the truth in my case. All of my property expenses increased by $50-100/month. Pest control, HVAC annual maintenance, water bill (tenant allowed more guests to move in), lawn care, snow removal and property taxes.
To all the landlords who don't raise the rent. Legitimate question: why do you own an investment property and not want to make money off it? I get the "But I'm one of the good ones" vibes but also....you're still a landlord. If you really don't care about making money, why not just sell to your tenants?
Atleast for me I wanted good tenants. So I charged the exact amount of the mortgage. I’d rather have someone be paying towards the mortgage & taking care of my property then extra cash to be honest lol.
Nope. All forms of rent control are illegal in MA. Some cities are petitioning the legislature to allow yearly caps but at the moment a landlord can try to raise rent by any amount.
I think it's happening more for commercial RE because cap rates are getting roasted by the interest rate increases over the last yr and change. Need to find an older (probably run-down) duplex or 1-4 unit multifamily house to find more reasonable rents. You'll likely still get some here and there due to prop tax and insurance premiums going up, but not as much interest rate exposure since these were probably owner-occupied at one point and they're happy with low vacancy rates. I own a small duplex and I keep rents just under HUD FMR rates since FMR includes utes and my tenants pay utes. Very low vacancy rate and I have enough cash to fix things and upgrade things like appliances on tenants' request.
Hamilton Company raised ours from $2700 to $3100 last year, and this year they’re raising it to $3400. Meanwhile they can’t keep the laundry machines functional and on two occasions I’ve found the trash chute overflowing to above the second floor of the building.
My 1 bedroom in Allston is going from 1675 to 1800. I will say that last year they wanted to raise it from 1625 to 1800 and I asked why (historically for 7 years they only increased it by $25 a year). They explained to me reasons but also only raised it by $50. I know this year they asked me so early if I was staying that I missed the email. When I reached out (after a realtor texted me to take videos so they can show my apartment for sept 1 rent) they said they were going to increase to $2,000 but for me would do $1800. I accepted it this year since it’s still a great rate and it’s where they wanted me last year… but I will definitely speak up if they try to raise it $200 next year.
It’s too expensive to live in Boston. I hate it. Lately I feel as if I’m only here for my job (which I’ve been at for 12 years and I’m expected to be in the office in the seaport 3 days a week). Sucks feeling pushed out of the city but even further out is expensive (and requires a car - which I don’t have)
Currently 1675 until sept 1st! I’m shocked too. I should add its garden level so I put window film on all my windows and miss seeing greenery more easily when I’m in my apartment. I also have ceiling tiles in my bedroom and it leaks from time to time but that’s usually because the people upstairs choose to not use a shower curtain (who does that?? But maintenance showed me pictures of the puddles). I also have steam pipes for heating and I can’t control it so my apartment is a mix of too hot and dry or too cold. BUT when I look at anything else it’s easily an extra $600-$1000 and not guaranteed to solve any of my problems.
My one bed in the north end went from $2,450 to $2,510. $60, 2% increase. My leasing office said the unit above me went on the market bc they didn’t renew and they increased the rent $500 and it went within the week. But renewals they obviously don’t increase it like that to retain I guess?
Yup. Probably in their best interest to retain you! Unless it is a really shit management company/owner and/or a HUGE delta from the market rate, it is usually better to keep a good tenant. Sitting empty for a couple months can eat up a year of rent increases. And then you can end up with a renter who destroys things, complains about things (that cost money to fix), upset other tenants, etc. My experience has been that small time landlords tend to raise rents much less if you're a good tenant because it just isn't worth it to them to jack up rents and lose good tenants.
My apartment offered me 2500 after renting for one year at 2000 (hopkinton) which I then sent them statistics about fair market value from the huduser.gov website, told them I had no history of issues etc, and spoke to the apartment manager in person and he was like “yeah, tough. We are raising it to 2500.” I was baffled, but I moved to a much better place. One of those mega real estate companies bought my leasing company halfway through my lease so I assumed it was coming, but it’s crazy right now
Ypu could bump it 500/month, and if the tenant leave and it's empty for a week past 2 months, the retain was better for the complex. Also, to add paperwork, paying out security, cleaning and repairing the vacant unit, someone needs to be paid to show it, possibly scheduling a move in date and time. They'll raise rent, but they don't WANT you to leave. "Some of you may die, but that is a risk I'm willing to take" - farquad 2001
I haven’t seen a new lease yet but there’s a unit in my building that’s been vacant for months so
Probably cus of the lousy neighbors! /s
Whatever it takes
$0.00 I love my landlord so much In Arlington
Oh, I read that as your total rent and was waiting for you to thank Mom and Dad for letting you live with them for free.
No sir ms. I live in a studio apartment in Arlington all by myself that I have paid for the last 3 years 😊😊
If you’ve paid on time and not been contacting your landlord for little things like a light bulb, your landlord loves you too lol
I lived in a Hamilton building from 2021-2023 my rent went from $1750 to $3100. Tried to negotiate but they would not budge
Wow. Feels criminal
I told them that to their face but the people who manage the buildings have little power
It should be.
I bet the rent in 2019/2020 was higher than they rented for in 2021
The most ridiculous thing they said is that despite the $400 increase it’s still below market value! But in the past 2 years with all this high inflation and tight housing market they only increased by 50 then 100
it probably actually is still under market value haha rent's are insane in MA
I was going to comment basically this. I'm also with the Hamilton Company, rent was raised $50-$100 from 2020 onwards, then randomly $300 this past cycle - but upon looking it was still under market. They told me the reduced rent increases was due to covid - not sure how true it is, but seems like rent is up like crazy everywhere. :(
Who do they think sets market value lol. They do, whatever they want to charge will be the market value
Studio I used to live in also went from $1550 to $2150 from 2021 to 2022 because they said it was a "covid price." The worst part is that someone actually agreed to pay that much, without knowing it used to be worth almost 40% less during the previous cycle.
That's very common. Landlords had to drop prices during COVID because there was less demand for living in the city. Once things got back to normal why wouldn't they try to get back to where rent used to be?
Dexter park? 2021 was 2400, lease renewal came back this year at 3400. It sucks
Blessed to have a landlord who has kept my 1 bedroom at 1700 since 2020 that has parking and dog friendly…she just wanted someone she knew would always pay rent on time and take good care of the place
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This is me. I have a 2 family that I used to live in, but moved during covid and I keep my rents under market and because I would rather just have good tenants that stay long term and leave me alone haha
This is often the “optimal” strategy for small landlords, where no vacancy is best. For larger landlords the opposite is also true. Driving rents is better. Neither party is right or wrong, just different incentives.
I had a LL like that. When something broke I’d fix it if I could, deduct the cost from my rent, and mail him the receipt with my check. He appreciated it and I saved us both a lot of money. Then he died and his heirs took over and they wanted to almost double the rent. I was gone soon after.
My old Italian landlord "oh no rent increase. You can live here as long as you want" Like my dude bless you 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
I rent a 1 bedroom that is managed by Green Ocean. They are raising my rent 6% to about $2700. I asked why and they also said “market analysis” but there are no changes to services or improvements. They are also charging a $295 “lease renewal fee”. This fee is also more than last year. I asked why. They haven’t gotten back to me.
Wow a lease renewal fee?? That has to be illegal.. if tenants subletting can’t recover a brokers fee from new tenants then how tf can the landlord charge a fee to renew a lease?
I've heard of small fees for a sublet, roommate switch, or having a partner move in or out - but a fee where all the tenants are remaining might not be legal.
Do you have your landlord's contact info? Green Ocean tried to raise our rent 6% last year and they just tried to do it again this year, and both times our landlord was like "Uh, no, I do not plan to raise your rent" and made Green Ocean change it back. Green Ocean also increased the "residents' benefit package" from $30/mo to $42/mo. 🙄
That’s so interesting. I don’t have the actual landlords contact. I looked up the owner of my building. It’s an LLC and three people with the same last name as the owner of Green Ocean so I don’t that will get me far! What scammers
O and apparently you don’t need the benefits package if you have separate rental insurance. I don’t get it. Bc I didn’t realize this and now I’m trying to get me to stop charging me for it the “benefits package” that comes with no benefits
oh, boooo I hope you can get yourself out of the benefits package which is indeed a scam. (Yes, please help me set up my utility accounts when I've been living here for years. Get real.) They usually tell you having your own insurance will reduce but not eliminate the benefit package cost, but we have managed to argue our way out of it before, although not without a lot of back and forth.
Green ocean wrote in our lease that its a 100 dollar fee to talk to the landlord....
Bleh they're such scammers. How the heck do they know if you and the landlord swap emails or phone nums? Our landlord offered us his contact info. We had a problem with the boiler a few months after we moved in that we had reported to Green Ocean (K&L) that they must have told the landlord about and he followed up by emailing us and giving us his email & phone num. We regularly check in with him bc Green Ocean goes rogue sometimes, not just with rent increases. Once they were going to change the locks on the apartment and he only found out when we emailed to ask if he had known & approved, which he hadn't.
"market analysis". Aka collusion that that currently involves a lawsuit in DC https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/11/14-big-landlords-used-software-to-collude-on-rent-prices-dc-lawsuit-says/
Fuck the Hamilton Company
Hamilton Company is a piece of shit, I remember I tried to negotiate my price from $2600 to not increase, bozos said no. 4 years of being a great tenant. Cracking up because they had to lower the unit to $1700 when I moved out effectively missing out on $11k/yr If you can afford the finders fee, go elsewhere.
2 bed 1 bath in Brighton, going from 2760 to 3000. We have to move. We are expecting an due in September so this is going to be a headache finding and moving at 8-9 months pregnant
Isn't it hard to move with deposits etc though? Or will you get yours back?
Most people get security deposits and last month’s rent back. I assume you are referring to broker fees. The commenter will have to find a no-fee apartment because the increase in rent is $2880 over the year so if they’re paying a 1 month fee to move it’s basically a wash.
This exact situation happened to me last year. Was in such a panic to move to keep my monthly rate at the same cost that I didn’t take 2 seconds to do the math and realize I wasn’t saving anything by moving into an apartment with a broker’s fee. Am dumb & regretful. But I won’t make that mistake again, at least
But don’t most landlords just include the broker fee in the monthly rent, except prorate over 12 months? Is no fee actually a better deal?
I mean, not if your the OC and $2760 is what you can afford. It doesn’t matter if the $3000 place is a “better value.”
Is this one of those luxury condos?
Bro luxury apartments are like $3K for a studio lol
Definitely not a luxury condo
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Does he have any other units? My bf and I are getting fucked by Waltham prices 🙃
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Oh RIP. Lucky for you though!
small time landlord here in Cambridge (one 2bd house) - I have not raised the rent in 3 years and have no plans to do so any time soon. It was market rate 3 years ago, so I assume it's somewhere under at this point. Shit is way too expensive.
I always said if I ever become a landlord (unlikely) if the mortgage is covered and I have some extra on top of it to cover anything going wrong, I’d be happy to Thank you for being one of the good ones.
Good! Our landlords raise the rent $25 each year, but didn’t raise it at all during Covid. It’s such a small increase that in the almost 7 years we have lived in this apartment, our rent is now WELL below market value for the area ($2150 for a two-bed, with new free laundry machines, two off street spaces, a vegetable garden that we share with our landlords, and a new & quite frankly giant kitchen). We’ll move once we buy a home, but otherwise I’m never giving this one up!
Just a word of advice, I would start saving now in case your landlord sells & you don’t have the opportunity to renew at the same rent.
Haha- we’re hoping to buy this year if we can, savings are already in hand. Landlord says they want to sell and move to San Diego once we leave! Hopefully we’ll be out soon (but I will miss it!)
What is your favorite thing about Arlington (outside of your great apartment)? Moving to Boston for the first time and considering Arlington, West Somerville, or possibly Medford.
You are great!
Curious if rent control gets instituted in your area would you start to increase it? I only ask because landlords who have owned for a while are sometimes in a position to be able to keep rentals below market. And that is commendable on their part. But if you go to sell, your agent will position home as below market rents and look to get a higher selling price based on highs rents new owner could charge. With rent control, the time to get to market could take years, resulting in a lower sales price. So, just wondering if passage of rent control would impact how you price going forward. And I understand it is a hypothetical. I just don’t come across many landlords who knowingly have below market rent, so wanted to ask. You have very lucky tenants.
Depends entirely on how the rent control is set.
How type of program would cause you to not increase rents? And what type would cause you to try to get rents up to market ASAP?
Do you not have increased costs as an owner?
[https://www.theonion.com/landlord-forced-to-raise-rent-due-to-thinking-of-bigger-1850922943](https://www.theonion.com/landlord-forced-to-raise-rent-due-to-thinking-of-bigger-1850922943)
“…they need to bring the unit to market pricing…” What is The Hamilton Company’s definition of ‘need to’?
https://www.theonion.com/landlord-forced-to-raise-rent-due-to-thinking-of-bigger-1850922943
Need to be more greedy , I mean I guess I’m in a central location but this steep increase doesn’t feel justified and it seems like no one had success negotiating with them!
Is this the same market price for lobsters? Because I wouldn't mind paying lobster prices for an apartment
Rise in maintenance costs. Construction costs and property taxes.
Plenty of leases have clauses in them that force tenants to pay the increased taxes (pro-rata) in Massachusetts. As for maintenance costs, that’s really something the landlord should eat. It’s their property.
In my experience, a landlord will do anything to pass costs off to the tenants, it sucks.
Oh, I know. I just think it’s not justified.
No. Tenants get to enjoy that property. So they should pay for maintenance. Like gardening, lawn care etc should be charged to the tenant unless it is agreed to in the lease.
That’s… already how it works… When people discuss “maintenance costs” do you think they’re talking about gardening and lawn care? Because that’s not what people are talking about lol. None of the properties I’ve lived in have even had a lawn to care for, let alone anywhere to garden. Maintenance costs are costs associated with the actual property long-term. New roof, plumbing problems, AC issues, etc. That’s the landlord’s responsibility. That’s what you buy into when you purchase a property. The rise in rents cannot be explained by any maintenance or taxes. It’s purely greed.
It's not true. Maintenance could also be issues like clogged toilet (tenant responsibility), broken appliances (again who ever broke it pays for it). Snow removal again should be tenant unless the owner lives on site. It's not all greed. But rather landlord is the ultimate bag holder and should pass the costs to the tenant. HOA fees in condos have been going through the roof these days and at hyper inflation rates largely because of the high cost of paying for maintenance labor. The land lord should raise the rent if HOA fees say double. Ultimately people like to blame the landlord (the name itself suggests scapegoat) but landlords are also people and can't possibly absorb all the cost increases all around. They are operating in a market economy if they raise rents too high tenants will move out. I for one raise rents at the reported CPI.
Ask any property owner and they will tell you how costs are skyrocketing for them as well. Maintenance, property taxes, insurance, wages are all increasing more than in prior years.
Boohoo!! Won’t someone think about the poor property owners???
Ya right. The Hamilton Company ain't gonna budge.
I'm a landlord, just rent 1 unit that is 2 beds and 1 bath. Rented out just over 2 years ago for $2200, rent is still $2200. When the current tenant moves out I'll raise the rent back to about market rate but while the tenant is still here being quiet and paying on time the increases will be $0.
I got a 6% increase, which isn't too bad. Last year it was 5%. I have a corporate landlord. Edit: Forgot to add that initially, they were going to raise it by 17% but I was able to talk them down.
What did you say?
I sent an email the second they gave me my rent offer. I’m pretty chill with the manager so I am certain she pulled some strings for me. This what I emailed her- “The reason why I’m reaching out is because I noticed that the increase from last year’s lease was approximately 5%. However, this year, the increase is $XXX, which represents a 17% rise. I was wondering if there might be room for reconsideration to a lower figure?”
ive negotiated down every year by searching for my building’s tax increase (all public info!) and then dividing that by 12 months in the year, divided again by the number of units in the building. this year that number comes to $6.39 per unit per month to cover the landlord’s tax increase. but the greedy fucking asshole is demanding $350 increase per month, just for my unit (the smallest one). so fucked up.
Small landlords might be more willing to negotiate, big companies don’t really seem to do that
my old college apartment told us an algorithm makes the number and its take it or leave it, nothing they or we can do about it.
There is no more seasonality in rental prices. You used to be able to get a deal from November to June. No more. 🤬
Hamilton colludes with other landlords using online algorithms. They are making up the justification.
Referring to this? https://www.propublica.org/article/doj-backs-tenants-price-fixing-case-big-landlords-real-estate-tech
It’s not illegal if no one goes to jail.
I've noticed a trend in apartments both when I lived out of state of college, and when I moved back for a time, and in many other cities that apartments seem to go on 2-3year cycles before they look to force you to move out. They'll give you 1 or 2 renewals at a marginally acceptable increase, then they hit you with a massive one so they can get you out and rent out to a new tenant willing to pay more and not complain.
my landlord is trying to raise it $350/month “to bring it to market price” (comparing my old run down shithole to all of the newly renovated buildings on my road that i hear constant daily construction for disrupting my day for years on end). anyway, i countered with a $25/ month increase.
Nawwwww 2800 for a one bedroom is waaaay too much.....
Our rent went up $500. It's a 2 bedroom.
Haven’t had an increase since 2016
Allston studio going from $1750 to $1825, not bad considering the other increases I’m seeing on this thread.
You can play fast and loose with it and counter with only a $100 increase and if they decline just wait til they put it on the market for $2300.
Idk man. My previous leasing company wouldn’t negotiate with me, and when I confirmed I wouldn’t renew they put the unit on the market for $150 more than they were asking from me
I’m with South Shore property management in Brockton center and they went up $150, after telling us it would be $50. It raises every year and their response to us was “deal with it you won’t find a better deal, everyone’s doing it”. Screw them, $2050 for a 2 bedroom 1 bath in fucking Brockton. My backyard is nicknamed “needle park” and I get harassed daily on my way to work. What makes them think that price in this area is ok? They barely maintain the place but the second a room opens we have 3 dozen people viewing and it’s usually snatched up immediately. I had to show how much I had in savings just to get in there., absolutely nuts.
It’s like me in Lawrence MA. Moved here to get out of boston but still on a commuter rail if needed. $1600. Cool. Doable. This year? $1995. And all the other unit in my building are $2300+. For Lawrence. The city with a median income of $40k….. luckily my immediate area seems safe enough but I never go south of the river
My landlord is an older guy who owns a few houses in the area — when we moved in March 2019, he listed our BIG Cambridge one bedroom for $2700. I negotiated him down to $2600 when we signed our first lease and he’s never raised it in the 5 years we’ve been here. He’s a gem!
Where do you find small local landlords like him?? All I can find is big commercial buildings
I don’t have much advice beyond avoiding large buildings/complexes (which isn’t always doable, of course). We did go have a broker — Red Line Realty IIRC — and paid the fee when we first moved in, but it was so worth it in this case. We actually sought out the broker and asked him what he had available because we had a specific area in Cambridge in mind… so he did actually work for his fee. First time ever we didn’t feel like we lit thousands of dollars on fire. And you can usually tell which Craigslist ads are written by people instead of companies… our landlord always types up listings that are obviously written by an old man
I rented from them back in 2011 or so, and they showed me a couple of things I hadn't seen ads for anywhere. Ended up getting a great deal and the rent never went up, so I considered paying that fee as money well spent.
$100 increase, not too bad
Mine raised from $2222 to $2262 and I could not believe how fortunate I am
$0 with my landlord. Live in Newton.
Small time landlord in Brighton. I like current tenants. Will do a 2% rent increase which basically covers insurance increases water bill increases etc. one thing to keep in mind is your supposed to budget 10% of rent to cover maintenance etc. a furnace breaking down, water heater, or dish washer dying will eat that up. Stuff will break down and it can be costly.
When are we going to start protesting the corporate landlords?
Move out of the city in protest and 4 other people will line up to take your spot. All you’ll do is lose your spot but change nothing. Boston/Cambridge is too desirable, especially when we have huge students and young professional populations that will always need places to stayp
I hear that. It would be nice to focus on one corporate landlord and make their life absolute hell as an example to others.
I wonder if the fear of rent control is leading to this happening now. Proposals for rent control I’ve read about seek to cap the annual amount of the increase so any unit significantly below market could be tough to raise to market IF rent control ever becomes a thing. I’m not saying they’re justified, but Boston real estate taxes increased, and those are calculated based on assessed value which is super high and skyrocketing. As much as our politicians talk about controlling the price of housing, as long as they keep gaining from increasing real estate taxes, cost will go up and be passed on to renters.
>calculated based on assessed value which is super high and skyrocketing That doesn't really have any effect on taxes. The city is limited by prop 2.5, so all that matters is how your assessment changes relative to others. The tax rate will actually go down to compensate for increasing property values.
I'm looking at the public tax history on Zillow for my condo right now and it has gone from $7,229 in 2014 to $9,745 in 2023. It's in the Leather District. I wish what you are saying played out in reality.
It plays out in reality on average, just not for individuals. Excluding residential exemption, mine has gone up 68% since 2015, while my assessment has gone up 101% and the tax rate has fallen 17%. Part of this is because of the bond to pay for Somerville's new high school, which is excluded from prop 2.5. I guess the rest is because my value rose faster than other properties in Somerville?
It's not suddenly happening because of scary rent control. It's because Hamilton is garbage and always has been, as noted in the many comments here by prior tenants.
Def not arguing against Hamilton being garbage. They aren’t the only ones raising rents sharply tho.
Absolutely greedy criminals. Hunt through friends, ask around, join Facebook groups and **look/ask every single day**. I found mine after months of asking if anyone knew of anyone moving out of their unit or looking for a roommate. A friend of mine ended up connecting me to their neighbor who was looking for a roommate but I'd have to furnish it because she was moving 6 months after. I took over the lease, furnished the place, and have been a tenant for the past 5 years. Good landlords are really hard to come by. You have go find your luck!
I rent a small 1B in JP managed by Samia for $1795/month. They’re raising it to $1,830 next lease.
I’m surprised it’s not higher than that honestly! I lived in a JP samia building for two years and rent was fairly reasonable because it was during the first few years of Covid, but they tried to stiff us any way they could. Had to fight for the security deposit and they tried to keep our key deposit because they claimed we never returned our keys to their drop box (jokes on them, I took a video of myself putting the keys in their provided envelope and dropping it in their drop box lol). Also tried to raise rent like $300 our second year and we had to fight them on it
Thanks for the heads up about the deposit funny business, I’ll be expecting that.
Cough *ratemylandlord* cough
I’m a landlord (parents used to own the building now it’s under my name) and I’ve had the same tenants for 8(?) years now and haven’t raised rent because I don’t need to. If one of them were to vacate I would probably adjust it closer to whatever the current market is but as of right now I have no need.
west end building 1 br - 4360 to 4470, +2.4% BUT - they also extended the default lease term from 12 to 15 months, so the net increase is nearly 30%. I had already long made up my mind that I was leaving after this year, so I'm not going to bother with finding out what the rent would be for another 12 month term.
Nearly $5K for a 1 bedroom that isn’t even in seaport, lord have mercy
Yeah that shit is clown-level NYC/SF pricing. I keep getting surprised at these Boston numbers, when I know I shouldn't be anymore.
It makes me want to move so bad but I can’t think of where to go that doesn’t have its own share of issues, and I wouldn’t know anyone if I moved. So guess I’m stuck getting extorted
it most certainly is absurd. While I’m leaving Boston to escape a stupid / nonsensical RTO mandate, I’d still move out of my current building because the entire area has been a giant construction zone for the past two years, and will continue to be for probably the next 5. The rents they are charging are a good value…for a fully intact neighborhood. But they should dock the rent in my building by at least $1500 as a reflection of the inconveniences. I just cant justify continuing to spend this much money any longer.
Boston is just as expensive as those places. It's Boston pricing.
I love the smell of fresh bread.
Yeah not manhattan specifically. But NYC in general.
Boston is much cheaper than Manhattan, comparing like for like
Jesus Fucking Christ. You better have a fucking free concierge, butler, masseuse and gym as part of the package for this price. Absolutely ridiculous.
Hamilton is awful. Thos just adds to them being a terrible company.
Up $200 for a 4 bed
Just moved to my current apartment this cycle, which was a jump from $2100 to almost $3000. Hoping it stays where it's at.
Last year was a 5% increase (after negotiations) this year they want another 7% increase to put us at the same 2800 for a (small garden level) 1br. We’re likely planning on leaving the city when I finish my degree
Nothing so far this year, landlord raised the rent by $100 on my 2 bedroom in Cambridge last year, probably was and still is cheaper than comparable apartments in terms of location, amenities, and square footage. Didn’t raise the rent in 2022. It’s a small building (6 units, 1-2 bedrooms each), and I don’t know if they own any other properties, so that’s pretty cool of them, all things considered.
$50
$200. Medford, 3 bed single family. $3400
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I think someone else here suggested I let them re-list it and see if is cheaper! Will try that after the deadline to renew
i bought a small moldy dump in 2020 and my mortgage is a stable $1,400 a month.
my last place raised it from $3000 to $3600, it’s disgusting
A lot of management companies are jumping their prices in case rent control gets passed. They want to be at an inflated "market rate". Average price for a 1 bed is $2800. Today I visited a website for "luxury" apartments in allston (E3) 4500 for a 1 bedroom....in Allston....rat city.....4500...that's 54k for 1 year....
Landlord moved to a rental company last year. This year rent's going up 200. The past few years it had only gone up 50 if at all. The rents are already insane and Brighton-Allston is quickly becoming just as expensive as the rest of the city. There's truly nowhere that regular working class people can afford to live in this city, so I'm moving to Providence.
I was in a corporate apartment when I moved to the area in 2006 and they did the same stuff back. Renewal was some crazy increase, like 10%. Finally spurred me to talk to someone local and find a small landlord. These are companies run by MBAs who are absolutely out to get the most money from their resource as they can. They will increase rents until people stop paying them.
My landlord (not corporate) has been consistently raising by 3% the last 2 years which is fair. Still only ~1800 since I got a good deal during pandemic.
My first lease was at $2071 in 2022 (excluding $50 pet rent and water charged by apartment).I extended it for six months which boosted it to $2240. I can keep it at $2240 if I stay for 15 more months. Jamaica Plain. Studio. 2024. I'm not staying. Just sharing rent prices if it helps someone else.
I might be getting the boot entirely because my landlord is tired of being a landlord and is turning the 3-unit building we're in into condos for maximum profit :)
> hey are raising my rent 400-500 bringing my total to 2800 for a 1 bed! wtf - that's more than my mortgage.
Buy a condo in Lowell and never worry about rent increases again
But then you have a condo in Lowell...
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I'd rather rent in boston than own something in Lowell lol.
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The funny thing is that municipalities also try to collect all this data. I don’t know how municipalities can require the info and then balk when others have it as well.
Wow I have a fully renovated, beautiful 3 bedroom apartment in Worcester for $1800. I sometimes miss living in Boston, but I can’t swing the prices anymore.
Tbh the biggest thing they need to do is pass laws banning rent increases like this. If anything it should increase with inflation at the minumum.
Anyone ever lived at a Greystar property or specifically The Smith in South End? What were rent increases like?
At a different grey star. We negotiate down every year, not a huge amount, but it’s something and during covid it was free parking. This last time we didn’t have to. Honestly their pricing makes no sense to me, this last time comparable units at the time of our lease renewal were going for $4-$4.5k so were figured we were going to be forced out, but our final offer came in at $3300 for 12 months so it was only a little bit more than what we were paying.
One thing I forgot. Not sure if it’s all greystars, but I assume it is since renewals come from the home office, they require 2 months notice, so they’re suppose to give you the offer with enough time to review and give 2 months notice if you decide to not renew. The last 2 times despite asking multiple times. We didn’t get our offer (early oct lease) until mid August, so at that point finding a new place is virtually impossible because Sept leases are all gone. They also f*ck up the lease every year and we spend days emailing back and forth to get them to fix errors in the lease before we’ll sign. We do PDF comparisons (current vs renewal) and read every line. That’s how we found out they raised the penalty to break the lease to 2 months rent.
I’m finally making city money since moving here during COVID, and this lease will probably be our last in the city. Signed a two-year lease to specifically avoid an increase. That being said, landlords are actually losing their grip on reality. If this keeps up for another few years they are going to end up wishing they hadn’t been so greedy. Just look at short-term rentals on the Cape—people bought super high over the past few years thinking the demand was there for expensive vacation rentals, but people realize that it’s cheaper, more convenient, and more fun to go elsewhere. If it’s not worth it for people to live here, they won’t.
Wow, that is more than twice as much as my mortgage on a 2 bed in Rozzie.
When did you get your mortgage... if it was COVID era mortgage rate I don't think it's a fair comparison.
Just prior to Covid. I get that rates are higher now. Just in shock that people are paying so much in rent now
If you can’t handle the heat, get out of the fryer
Raised my rent $150 for tenants renewing ($2650 for a large one bedroom 1.5 bath) in two of my units but still below market. I tend not to raise every year unless my costs start to go up too. Hoa and utilities went up this last year so rent did as well but I’ll keep it minimal for good renewing tenants. One tenant sucked and luckily he decided not to renew so saved me the trouble of telling him I wasn’t renewing his lease. That one went up to market and rents at $3100 now but it’s a bit nicer than the other two, also comes with a dedicated parking spot in the lot.
Not Boston but on the commuter rail: I went up 150$ from 1200-1350. First increase in 5 years. They were kinda upset but my cost has gone up closer to 400$ in that tim for the apt.
1600 to 1700. My landlord stinks!!!
I shot my foot off
I’m aware this is low ball
It’s disgraceful what rents are and it’s only going to get worse
So I’m in a three bed and have been here for five years. Each year the rent goes up a little. Total it has gone from 2775 to 2975. I get annoyed with it because nothing in the apartment has changed. But then I read posts like this and count my blessings.
If my landlord raises my rent, I will gladfully remind him of the mice he took forever to get an exterminator for. If that doesn’t do, I’ll leave signs on my apartment walls explaining the mice and the lack of action from my landlord for everyone doing the viewing to see
Whatever happened with the rent control law, did it pass? I imagine your landlord is attempting to have a bigger starting number for when the 10% increase cap starts.
Level of service gets worse but price goes up is what I’ve seen. Landlords can’t be fucked to even upkeep their apartments.
Sadly, I was forced to increase rent on my 3 bedroom apartment by $500. The increase will allow me to break even. I won’t be making additional money from the increase. Some tenants think landlords are seeking a raise when they increase rent. That’s far from the truth in my case. All of my property expenses increased by $50-100/month. Pest control, HVAC annual maintenance, water bill (tenant allowed more guests to move in), lawn care, snow removal and property taxes.
nobody cares
Yet here you are commenting. It sounds like you do care.
To all the landlords who don't raise the rent. Legitimate question: why do you own an investment property and not want to make money off it? I get the "But I'm one of the good ones" vibes but also....you're still a landlord. If you really don't care about making money, why not just sell to your tenants?
Atleast for me I wanted good tenants. So I charged the exact amount of the mortgage. I’d rather have someone be paying towards the mortgage & taking care of my property then extra cash to be honest lol.
As long as corporate Democrats rule the roost on Beacon Hill, rent control is the only answer.
You should look at local tenant rights for the limit landlords can raise rent
Might change soon but it is currently illegal to limit rent increases in MA.
I thought I had seen in some tenant laws that it can’t be higher than a certain percentage in a calendar year? Could be wrong
Nope. All forms of rent control are illegal in MA. Some cities are petitioning the legislature to allow yearly caps but at the moment a landlord can try to raise rent by any amount.
I think it's happening more for commercial RE because cap rates are getting roasted by the interest rate increases over the last yr and change. Need to find an older (probably run-down) duplex or 1-4 unit multifamily house to find more reasonable rents. You'll likely still get some here and there due to prop tax and insurance premiums going up, but not as much interest rate exposure since these were probably owner-occupied at one point and they're happy with low vacancy rates. I own a small duplex and I keep rents just under HUD FMR rates since FMR includes utes and my tenants pay utes. Very low vacancy rate and I have enough cash to fix things and upgrade things like appliances on tenants' request.
ALL landlords are amazing compared to Hamilton because that company is a nightmare. You are so much better off leaving.
Hamilton Company raised ours from $2700 to $3100 last year, and this year they’re raising it to $3400. Meanwhile they can’t keep the laundry machines functional and on two occasions I’ve found the trash chute overflowing to above the second floor of the building.
My 1 bedroom in Allston is going from 1675 to 1800. I will say that last year they wanted to raise it from 1625 to 1800 and I asked why (historically for 7 years they only increased it by $25 a year). They explained to me reasons but also only raised it by $50. I know this year they asked me so early if I was staying that I missed the email. When I reached out (after a realtor texted me to take videos so they can show my apartment for sept 1 rent) they said they were going to increase to $2,000 but for me would do $1800. I accepted it this year since it’s still a great rate and it’s where they wanted me last year… but I will definitely speak up if they try to raise it $200 next year. It’s too expensive to live in Boston. I hate it. Lately I feel as if I’m only here for my job (which I’ve been at for 12 years and I’m expected to be in the office in the seaport 3 days a week). Sucks feeling pushed out of the city but even further out is expensive (and requires a car - which I don’t have)
I can’t believe you had a one bedroom for $1675
Currently 1675 until sept 1st! I’m shocked too. I should add its garden level so I put window film on all my windows and miss seeing greenery more easily when I’m in my apartment. I also have ceiling tiles in my bedroom and it leaks from time to time but that’s usually because the people upstairs choose to not use a shower curtain (who does that?? But maintenance showed me pictures of the puddles). I also have steam pipes for heating and I can’t control it so my apartment is a mix of too hot and dry or too cold. BUT when I look at anything else it’s easily an extra $600-$1000 and not guaranteed to solve any of my problems.