Rent Reduction

After reading this article in the Wall Street Journal online, I decided to see if it would be possible for my partner and I to have our rent lowered as well.

Our lease renewal was coming up on the 18th of April, and we wanted to give our landlord plenty of time to mull over our suggestions, so we drafted a letter and sent it off at the beginning of the month. Sure enough, on Thursday we received a phone call from our landlord, agreeing to our suggested €250 a month reduction, thereby saving ourselves €3000 per year.

Success!

If you are currently a renter, here are some tips for negotiating a reduction in your rent.

1. Do your research
The last thing you want to do in this crucial letter is appear uninformed. I'd been monitoring property prices in our area of Dublin for the past few months, including rental prices. When we decided to write a letter to our landlord, I was able to inform him that units similar to ours (2 bedroom, 2 bathroom) in the same complex were renting for €250 per month less than we were currently paying. This research worked in our favour, as the landlord quickly contacted the letting agency to confirm what we'd said. The agent did his own research and was able to confirm our findings.

2. (Try to) be perfect tenants
Okay, sometimes this may be easier said than done, I admit. But if you have anything that may work in your favour, bring it to your landlord's attention. For example, we mentioned that we have always paid our rent on time and in full. We also wrote that, apart from one isolated incident involving rusty cutlery, pots and pans and a strongly worded letter, we have always been delighted with our apartment and would love to continue to call it home.

3. Above all, be nice!
You certainly don't want to seem demanding or unreasonable. By writing the letter to our landlord, we tried to demonstrate that lowering our rent would be mutually beneficial. We (as the tenants) would naturally benefit from saving €250/month. The landlord would also benefit from keeping the apartment occupied for another year (at a time when many rental properties are sitting vacant, losing their owners money), and not having to find new tenants (which would likely result in him having to lower the rent anyway to remain competitive in the rental market!) It's win-win, but play nice!

4. Be aware of potential repercussions
In an ideal world, every landlord would be as accommodating as ours. But before you rush off and write a letter of your own, have you considered all the potential consequences and possibilities? What if he or she refuses to lower your rent? Are you willing/able to move? Or are you happy to keep paying the same amount, but just wanted to "test the waters"? These are all important things to think about before writing your letter.

Ultimately, asking for a rent reduction involves a lot of research and some tense negotiations, but if you're successful, it can come as a huge relief, particularly if you're worried about making ends meet in these difficult times.

Best of luck!