You might be wondering can you really negotiate rent prices

A landlord has the right to increase your rental rate once your lease expires. At that point, you will, of course, have had a heads up of this happening. So should you sit around and just accept it or move out? No, you should try to negotiate your rent. Negotiation can be done based on monetary value as well as time saving factors. The worse that can happen is your landlord says no.

Review Your Good Tenancy with Them

Talk to your landlord about how much you appreciate your living situation. You are a good tenant, and it is worth their while to keep you there. You pay your rent on time, the place is in tip-top condition, you’re helpful to your neighbors, and are friendly to all passersby’s. Your landlord has never had any problems out of you, so why increase your rent making it unfavorable to you, which may force you to move?

Pay Up Early

Another rent negotiation strategy is to pay your rent early. Think like a landlord for a moment. There is nothing better than receiving their rent on time, except receiving it early! The earlier they can turn in money towards their mortgage, the faster they can pay off that loan. If they own the building outright, they can apply this money towards other expenses they have.

Sign an Extended Lease

Agreeing to an extended lease can go a long way. Your landlord will appreciate knowing they have a dependable tenant that pays on time. So instead of a standard one-year lease, agree to two years.

Show Your Landlord It’s to Their Advantage That You Stay

When a unit turns over, it’s not as simple as just a new tenant moving right on in. Your landlord has much to do to get the apartment rented again. Point out these expenses and timetables to your landlord if you were to move:

• Advertising expenses for the unit’s opening
• Screening applicants
• Repairing and cleaning the apartment
• Taking the time to show the apartment to multiple applicants

When you point out how they would spend between $400-$900 on all of this, keeping your rent as is or raising it to no more than $30 a month ($360) is a killer savings for them.

Don’t Be Over Excited

If you love a place don’t let on to the landlord that you do.  If they feel you want it you will lose some negotiating power.  Always look at places only when you check your emotions at the door. This will give you the opportunity to compare properties against each other and negotiate a better deal.

The above four strategies should help you negotiate the rent on your unit. If you both come to a compromise, you’ll save time and money.

What do you think?

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