This rule I learned the hard way. Occasionally a tenant will fall through the cracks and they will not receive a rent increase for a year or more. When I realize my mistake and try to increase the rent to be in line with the market, the tenant will often get upset and leave to find another place. So the effort to increase the rent by a few dollars could cost me thousands of dollars to update and advertise a vacant unit.
What I discovered is that you can include an automatic increase in rent in the lease at the beginning of the tenancy. This way, the tenant will be aware of future increases and can budget accordingly. You as a landlord still have to provide 30-day written notice of the increase, but at least the tenant is expecting the notice.
|
