Anyone that cares about money knows that renting is a sin and landlords are the epitome of evil (unless of course you’re the landlord); but renting from a super-mega apartment community corporation is a double edged dagger of hedonistic pleasure and unbearable financial pain, especially when you have my view of the city.
Well, my lease is nearly ending and these bimbos have the nerve to try and up my rent about $400! The following is my attempt to convince them to lower my rent or at least keep it the same.
Please take a look and let me know if you think I should tone this down, add anything or leave it just as it is! I haven’t sent it in yet but I wanted to share it with you!!
***And since I don’t like stalkers, the name of the apartment has been replaced by “Apartment Inc.”
Dear Community Manager of Apartment Inc.,
Thank you for taking the time out of your otherwise busy schedule to do an extensive review of the terms of my current lease in offering me a new one. Despite this review some important considerations have somehow been overlooked that I think imperative to discuss. I am greatly consoled, however, at your “dedication to providing me with a home I can be proud of and to assist me in every way in maintaining a comfortable lifestyle.” As such, I am equally confident that you will take every avenue necessary to ensure my ability to continue to call Apartment Inc. my home.
As you are undoubtedly aware, my ten months here have not been without difficulties. Issues ranging from the nearby stadium blasting music for entire weekends at a time to having my bike seat stolen are problems even a diligent renter could not have easily foreseen in deciding to rent within this otherwise “secure” community. For a time I considered leaving but decided to voice my concerns instead through the mediums allowed to me in hopes of some adequate compensation. Such compensation have I yet to receive; still, the end of my lease affords me a unique opportunity to quantify the substantiality of Apartment Inc.’s expressed commitment to the satisfaction of its community and the residents therein.
Per your letter these are the flexible leasing terms you offered that interest me solely on the basis of time:
| Lease Term | Rent |
| 12 | $1814 |
| 10 | $1829 |
| 8 | $1980 |
| 6 | $2071 |
While I would like to be able to consider a lease renewal, there are issues for which I find your current lease offering unreasonable:
No Balcony - the current offer is almost identical to what I received when I first inquired about two bedroom apartments here. However, when it was discovered that the unit that available was one of the only units that had no balcony the rate was lowered to the present $1651. Since this has not been taken into account in this current offer I find it immediately unacceptable.
Too Much Noise - the local stadium is right outside my window and I am not overjoyed at the prospect of enduring another summer of being able to enjoy their outdoor events from the comfort of my own living room. Also the residents of the local “affordable housing” complexes nearby invite everyone to their parties by blasting their loud music at every hour of the night. The noise I attribute largely to my unit’s unfortunate position of being in earshot of the entire city.
Poor Space Utilization - the square footage is largely marketed by your staff, however the poor space utilization and the small size of the bedrooms make it difficult to have any furniture. I can’t fit more than a queen sized bed and a dresser (and possibly a night stand in any room) not to mention any kind of desk. The height of the space gives an illusion of size, but there isn’t much I can do with an illusion. To put it plainly not all of that 1000 sq foot is usable space.
No-Value Amenities - Of course I was lured here in part by the Olympic sized pool, jacuzzi and club house, but none of these things have presented themselves with any sort of value for me as a resident. The pool is not cleaned nearly as often as it should. The Palm trees lining both sides are constantly full of bugs and drop tree garbage into the pool. Those issues make using the pool less than desirable. The gym is a half-hearted attempt by Apartment Inc. at best; to make matters worse it is usually full at the times of day when I might have used it otherwise. My only option has been to pay an additional $50 to join another gym.
Extra Utilities - Having to pay all of the utilities every month brings my actual rent to upwards of 1800 now. I’ve lived in plenty of apartments that don’t cover electricity, but having to pay for water and garbage seems excessive. It also hinders my ability to put money away into savings at the end of the month.
High Crime - Last but not least, the so-called gated community is in a state of despair. Many of the pedestrian gates don’t shut all the way or are easily opened. Of course the incident with my bike seat has only been compounded by the number of car break-ins in my building. Thugs hanging out at the corner of the local repair shop and the housing nearby don’t add to the sense of security here. –Though that’s the view from my window; as for the folks on the other end of the apartment, I’m sure don’t have to experience this.
Other Details
Here is a list of other things that should be considered before losing another community participant to high rent prices:
* Apartment Inc. loses more money by having my unit vacant for one month than it does by allowing me an affordable rent price more consistent with real market prices.
* Apartment Inc. has a low tenant retention rate which is apparent by the number of moving trucks consistently blocking the driveways.
* My building has an increasing vacancy rate with already 3 units that I know of, a 4th in the works, and mine would be the 5th.
* None of the popular rental listing sites have more than 3 units priced higher than $1650 for ANY two bedroom apartments in the entire city.
* Your tenant approval poll gave only a 53% satisfaction rating which you celebrated while previous and current renters gave only a 42% approval rating
Conclusion
There is no way I can afford to continue to live here at the prices you offered. In consideration of the aforementioned details, the following lease schedule seems a more reasonable alternative to your offer which I hope you would wholeheartedly consider:
| Lease Term | Rent |
| 12 | $1539 |
| 10 | $1559 |
| 8 | $1570 |
| 6 | $1661 |
For me being able to save $200-$300 a month by staying here outweighs the hassle of having to uproot myself and move again. And you, by encouraging me to stay here save more money by not having a vacant unit. The values that seemingly govern Apartment Inc. lead me to believe that such rationality is not beyond you, even in business.
Further, retaining tenants with reasonable and fair prices can only validate Apartment Inc.’s dedication to its tenants and the the idea of community which it holds paramount.
–Deeds, not words.
Thank you for considering my offer for a fair market price and for demonstrating to me your dedication to your tenants. I can only reciprocate such a gesture.
Sincerely,
Mr. Juan “Save Money” Millon
And for completeness sake the part of my counteroffer that I decided to exclude from my letter is on the next page!
Of course, you don’t have to read it… lol
April 26th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
I applaud your letter. I’m sure you aware that the ‘inc’ might just say pay the rent or get out but this is a very diplomatic way of putting forth your case. Kick ass really.
My only qualm is the structure of this sentence:
The pool is not cleaned nearly enough as it should be; with Palm trees lining both sides, it is constantly full of bugs and tree garbage and hence of no desirable use.
Perhaps this would work better
The pool is not cleaned nearly as often as it should. The Palm trees lining both sides are constantly full of bugs and drop tree garbage into the pool. Those issues make using the pool less than desirable.
I think this company should assess its marketing, its prices and its neighborhood when trying to jack up the rent. Thieves!
Good luck,
F
April 26th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
@Fendercase: Thanks for the feedback and the support! Thanks for the grammar check too! Suffice it to say my major was not in English.
I hope it works out — but I’m not married to the idea. I saw this one coming a long time ago, but I thought, “hmm might as well try!”
You’re totally right about the “Inc.” thing, they’re very corporate, but I thought I would double up my attempt by sending this letter to the head manager and to their corporate office. You never know!
April 26th, 2007 at 3:30 pm
I’d also change this sentence, too, as it is not a sentence.
Though that’s the view from my window. The folks on the other end of the apartment I’m sure don’t have to experience this.
Perhaps change it to: That’s the view from my window, though residents at the other end of the building may not enjoy this scenery.
April 26th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
@Reporter20 - I really appreciate everyone looking at my letter there and giving me so pointers. Thanks a bunch!
April 26th, 2007 at 6:29 pm
Hey, I take this personally! Lol, seriously, slum lords are the worst. I am a good landlord and really try to have a nice building for my tenants, because I plan on owning it for the next 50 years and really want them to take care of it.
April 27th, 2007 at 8:26 am
You need to hit the landlord with some hard facts about the rental market. The vacancy rate is at an all time high.
April 27th, 2007 at 8:50 am
@Q - Ah well, these apartments aren’t slums by any means lol. Theyre like condos or something — but the “landlord” in this case is a corporation so I dunno apples and oranges eh?
@Wesley - Yeah I’ve looked around and at your blog too — but so far the best information I have is the vacant units right in my building. It’s not too hard to see that my apartments are having a hard time filling up why do they want to discourage people to renew their lease? Seems stupid to me.
April 27th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
1mil, the corporation that manages your apartment complex is only interested in margins. I have to live right behind this apartment building of mine - I have to look at it every day. So I try to have some pride in it and keep it looking clean.
I tell you, it’s much easier to rent that way.
Buy a rental property (carefully). You will be happy with it.
April 27th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
I hope so ^_^
April 28th, 2007 at 6:51 am
Probably not going to work… but… worth a shot?
May 2nd, 2007 at 12:57 pm
That takes some guts!! Still, I would have left out anything about your savings, because they don’t care. If you make the letter shorter (e.g., “here is why your policy is unwise; here are the numbers to back me up” and “the rent is lower in this unit because it is an inferior unit and you won’t be able to rent it to anyone else at this price either”) and leave out what could be seen as personal gripes and you’ll have a stronger case.
Good luck!
May 2nd, 2007 at 1:39 pm
Good thing I haven’t submitted it yet, because now I can include all this marvelous feedback!
May 5th, 2007 at 12:39 pm
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May 7th, 2007 at 4:08 am
[…] Dear Apartment, You’re Charging Me Too Much For Rent! by Juan @ Millionster. An amusing letter by Juan ranting about the problems he faces in his current apartment. He wraps it up by dictating his own schedule of rent! - way to go dude! […]
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May 7th, 2007 at 6:21 am
I should have written a similar letter to our complex when we renewed a couple of months ago. They raised the rent 10% and tried to convince me it was a great deal, because if we were new it would be $200 more than our current rent. I politely informed them that if we were new we wouldn’t choose this complex. They seem to have a low success rate in collecting rents and therefore pass on the costs to those of us who are responsible and pay up on time. Why should I have to make up the difference for hoodlums who won’t pay their rent? The apartment next to us is vacant, and it has been for months. One set of tenants (young military guys) were evicted in absentia after getting about $5500 in arrears, and the other set suddenly disappeared one weekend after skipping out on rent.
Last week, they falsely accused me of late rent, when in fact they’d collected my rent twice in April. I guess they thought I wouldn’t notice.
May 7th, 2007 at 9:55 am
@dimes - it doesn’t sound like you’re in a very rosy situation yourself though! This letter for me was very difficult to write and like strange bird up there said. It takes guts. I had to set myself up to be rejected — but you know either way I wasn’t going to go for a $200 increase. They’re out of their freaking minds if you ask me.
Anyway I got an email from the management the same day I sent them that letter and they spent all of 20 minutes ripping me a new one about my letter and just making me feel stupid. She was rather condescending and went on and on about how they don’t have any problems filling the vacancies.
I cut off the discussion immediately once the manager started justifying her position and saying it was impossible to negotiate the rent price, I stood up and told her thank you. She went on and said she wasn’t done talking and why was I leaving, I replied “There is nothing else to talk about here, either you’re willing to discuss the price or you’re not. Clearly, you’re not willing to work with me on the terms I’ve presented. I would wish you luck on filling my unit, but apparently you don’t have a problem filling them, you only have a problem retaining your tenants” And I left. She called after me, I told her to have a nice day.
May 7th, 2007 at 10:27 am
[…] Juan at Millionster just isn’t going to stand for his apartment hiking up the rent: Dear Apartment, You’re Charging Me Too Much For Rent! […]
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