We are paying way more than others for an apartment. Our son could afford a town house now that they lowered the price and increased the incentive by $800. We told them to keep the money, but allow him to have a larger room. Even with that we are paying more than people paying for townhouses. We are also paying for covered parking. We believed in supporting this new company, only to be screwed. They said they’re following the market. What market? So we can watch it too. He’ll be there, but we are sorely displeased.
I’m not sure what your question is, but if his lease is up and he is unhappy with his situation or feels it is unfair then he should move.
He hasn’t moved in yet. He went for a visit. They were saying rooms were filling up quickly. So we gave him the deposit. Then we received a flyer the next week that they were lowering prices. We don’t want out we just want to compromise some way. A larger room or a lower price. We are paying more than all others.
And you want us to call the landlord for you?
Is the landlord unwilling to budge?
Hard to figure out what you want, or if you are just venting. So cancel the lease and sign a new one at the lower price.
If you paid a deposit but didn’t sign a lease, you may want to negotiate.
If you signed the lease, then you entered into a legally binding contract and it doesn’t matter what other people are paying. If you haven’t signed the lease, then renegotiate, break the current lease and sign a new lease at the lower rate, or find another place to live. It’s kind of like a hotel … no one pays the same rate.
That hotel comment is spot on! You get into a “you were willing to pay X…” situation. Pros and cons to being the early bird I guess. All you/he can do is to renegotiate- how depends on the legal agreement to date.
@jym626, not to be difficult, but do you understand what a lease is? It is a legally binding contract. You don’t get to start over. The OP’s kid can ask to renegotiate, but it likely won’t happen.
I could see how that could happen to my kid; she just signed a lease for a room in a 4 bedroom condo, and I suppose the landlord could reduce the rent for the remaining rooms if they want to. My kid would have no recourse. In my apartment building I know my neighbor across the hall pays more for fewer square feet, and I can see the nearby lake and she can’t. It is part of renting.
It sounded like the OP had just signed, and thought there might be a 3 day right of recision, but apparently that doesnt work in rentals. That said, DS just signed a lease, but the landlord made a change (long story) a few weeks later, just before they were to move in, and DS cancelled the lease. He got a full refund. DS suspects it might have been a bait and switch situation. The landlord tried to change the apartment they rented to a different one, and DS was able to walk away. Yes, it was due to a change the landlord tried to make in the contract, and this allowed DS to walk and get a full refund. But it sucks that other contracts have a 3 day right of recision and rentals apparently don’t.
But OP, you aren’t being screwed. You entered into an agreement and you are getting what you bargained for. You just don’t like it now because others may have a better deal. That isn’t LL cheating.
When the LL says he is following the market he probably means he is looking at the fill rate and price of similar units he owns, or that others own. For example if he offers a 2 br for $500 and 50 people submit apps, he may be lower than the market. If he offers that same unit for $1000 and only 1 person submits an app, he may be higher than the market.
My simple examples are just to demonstrate of course.
People that bought stock in Blue Apron a couple days ago, saw their stock drop about 10% today. They don’t get their money back. It isn’t cheating. * the market* determined at that moment their product was worth less.
Get used to it. My DD’s apartment complex outside of Atlanta changes rents DAILY. You pay for what you agree to on the day YOU sign. You don’t get to change to a lower price if the price on a unit like yours goes down the next day…or,the day after. Or whenever.
OP, you can easily find the state’s tenant laws online, and there likely is a tenant’s advocacy group as well if you Google. If there are any special rules in your state that might give you some recourse, that is a place to look. It is a useful resource in general to bookmark in case your kid has any future issues with their landlord or fellow tenants.
Where did the OP go??
In this case, I’m not sure what any advocacy group would try to do, or what leverage they’d have since apparently the OP is getting exactly what they negotiated and agreed to. And it is perfectly legal to base rents on “the market”.
Or for the OP: if rates for others had doubled(as example) after your deal was in place rather than declined, would you be arguing for your rent be raised too?
There’s the test for the fairness of the deal- if you feel your rate should be adjusted after-the-fact, based on what others pay, then are you willing to go up for that adjustment based on their price if they pay more? Or does only lowering your price appeal to your “fairness”, so you don’t feel like your being screwed? Would you contact an advocacy group to get your rent raised?