Hey there, pull up a chair and let me tell you a true tale of greed.

I was a tenant in a 4 family unit for over 10 years.

I paid rent on time (usually early), took the initiative to clean general areas on the regular (not in my lease), was quiet, seldom had company, non smoker, and got along well with everyone in the building.

All 4 units were occupied by good tenants and we had all been there some years, with small increases in rent over time but nothing too crazy.

February of 2023 our building was sold and we never met the new owners, not even a generic in person “Hi.”, instead we get emails letting us know our yearly leases will be renewed when the time came and gave us information for a pay portal to send our rent.

My lease was the first up for renewal that year in September.

From Feb to Sept I still had not met the new owner, and I get an email telling me my rent would be increasing to “match market” taking me from $800 to $1250 .. not a single person renting in that area pays over $900 bc the landlords are local and want to ensure their properties are filled.

I asked what would be done to offset this increase.. will I get new paint, new carpet, any repairs or upgrades? Nope, nothing, nada .. just get to pay more rent.

Although it was a hassle and I was not planning to move, I managed to find a much larger unit for just $875 and moved there.

Since the new owners took over, there have been no tenants.

All 4 units moved out after getting their new rent rates.

It is now June of 2024 and they still have 4 empty units sitting in that building.

Units that had previously been occupied by tenants paying their rent on time.

Sure you can raise rent. But let me tell a little story… 8 years ago, the folks across the street were renters. They mowed the lawn regularly, kept everything tidy, paid on time, and were quiet, nice people. Landlord increased rent by almost double, citing “keeping up with the market”. Those good tenants had to move out. Replaced by a couple who seemed great, but turned out to be very destructive. They left, landlord had to replace ALL the carpets inside, and re-sod the backyard. Landlord increased rent AGAIN. Sure, the new tenants keep to themselves, but I keep seeing notices put up on their door, both the front and the back yard are completely destroyed, and who knows how much damage they’ve done to the interior. I know they’ve added some walls inside to subdivide the rooms, because there are 11 people (half adults) living in a 3 bedroom house since the rent is so high. Yikes.

There are a lot of sketchy people out there. If you have a good tenant, I’d think twice about destroying a positive relationship.