Amid sky-high rents, property manager reveals ways to bring them down

With rents rising like the temperature, you may be looking for ways to bring down your rent down by a notch. Some landlords are known to increase the rent by unfair means, and therefore, it's advisable to study and understand how it's done. TikTok user Moriah (@moriahhmichelle), a property manager, recently took to the platform to talk about ways in which you can bring down the rent.

"If you are renewing your lease and they’re raising your rent by $200 or $300, they can also bring your rent down," she says in the video.

For starters, one must learn to bypass the leasing consultant and go straight to the property manager. According to her, the property manager has more control over the final rent and she vouches that they can bring down the rent to a huge extent if they want to. 

She then says that a property manager has access to a screen displaying all the rates as well as other competitive rent rates, including a small box indicating how much they could adjust the rent. “There’s a little box, and on the box, there’s a number inside. It could be 50, 300, 400, 500, 100, 150, 175. That’s the amount of money that can fix your renewal price," she adds. "So let’s say your rent is $1,500 currently, and your renewal rate is $1,750. Then, I go into your little thing and I look in the box. It says $150—I can bring the renewal price…down to $150," she says. 

"Anytime somebody says they can’t do anything about your renewal price, they’re probably lying to you because they want to make money. But there’s always a way to bring down your renewal price,” she continues.

In another similar Reddit post, user r/lovestretch10 asked in the subreddit, r/Renters, about negotiating rent. "Can I negotiate a lower rent with property management property?" the caption of the post read.

Many took to the post to talk about how they can lower the rent, "You can negotiate. I would just make sure to go in with reasonable expectations based on the circumstances," reads one comment. The user goes on to say that if the renewal is higher than the market rate then there is a way you can bring it down. 

According to Bay Property Management Group, there are a few things that must be kept in mind before negotiating the rent, like the timing. According to the report, the best time to negotiate is when the lease is about to expire. You could also try negotiating the rent during the winter months, which is the time when few people move in. As a new tenant, consider negotiating when entering a long-term agreement. You could also take professional help to pen a negotiation letter or talk to your landlord directly, in person. 

For more such stories, you can follow @moriahhmichelle on TikTok.