When, and how often is a landlord permitted to raise the rent?
Most lease agreements are a one-year agreement, during which time the rent cannot be raised. Some lease agreements automatically convert to a month-to-month agreement after the first year is up, at which time a landlord does have the option to raise the rent as frequently as every thirty days. This is not advisable in any circumstance, and certainly not in this economy. Even a modest increase in rent can be the impetus for a tenant to move if upped frequently. Some tenants are even currently re-negotiating their rents because of financial strain. Some landlords are choosing to offer a reduced rental rate rather than face the possibility of empty units.
It's customary to raise the rent on a yearly basis. A reasonable yearly increase can fall between 3 and 5 percent. If your city falls under the jurisdiction of rent control law, you'll need to check with you local rent control board to ascertain the legal limit of increase.
If your rental agreement has surpassed the one year mark, a good and reasonable time to increase the rent would also be when the tenant requests some sort of upgrade in the unit. If you agree to install new appliances or do other improvements that the tenant desires, that would be an appropriate time to ask for a rent increase.
Regardless of the reason or timing, you'll need to read the fine print of your lease agreement to see what is permitted in terms of rent increases.
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