My whole life I’ve wanted to be Dear Abby and offer people my advice (even when they didn’t want it). Now I get to be Dear Kimmi, a guide to the Boston real estate market. This is my tribute to the late, great Pauline Phillips, aka “Dear Abby.” Thanks for telling it like it is.

Have a Boston real estate question? Just ask me. All questions sent to me will be answered and we’ll be regularly featuring a lucky someone’s question in this blog and our newsletter.

Keep in mind, I am not a lawyer nor will I pretend to be one like that guy on “Suits.” All comments made by me are either my opinions and/or are based on my experiences & expertise as a Realtor. They should not take the place of legal advice.

Rhonda

Dear Kimmi: My lease is up soon. How much can my landlord increase my rent in Boston? And is that negotiable?

– Rhonda R.

Dear Rhonda R.,

Unfortunately for tenants, Boston has no form of rent control. When it comes time to renew your lease, increases are at the discretion of landlords and they can up it to whatever they want. Most lease renewals this year should expect to see an increase of a 2-5% or $50 to $100 on an average rate apartment.

Some landlords opt to increase according to market value. This was bad news for tenants in 2012. With the high demand for Boston apartments and shortage of inventory, Boston rental values skyrocketed and owners wanted to cash in on this. Most tenants that felt the brunt of this were living in high rises, luxury buildings, and just a few independently owned condos. We saw some rents escalate as much as 30% this year. Crazy times!

Translation: You were just going along minding your own business and living your life in your sweet apartment on the 20th floor of your high rise watching “Homeland” because you could afford Showtime at the time. Rent was $2500 when you moved in. Then all of a sudden, someone slips a piece of paper under your door saying “Dear Sir or Madam, your lease is up for renewal in 60 days. Based on current market value your new rent per month will be $3250. Please make an appointment with our leasing department to sign your new lease.”

Whoa! That’s a huge pill to swallow. The worst part is there aren’t many options out there that could save you money plus you have to bear the cost of moving expenses.

So what can you do about it?

My best advice is to pay your rent on time. When renewals come up use this as a tool to try to negotiate a lesser increase in rent. Write a letter to your landlord explaining the financial strain of such an increase. Communicate with your landlord so they know how awesome you are and would never want you to move. (You know that old saying about honey and flies or something.)

This is much harder to do in a high rise because prices for most come from “corporate” (which you never get a chance to meet) and are solely based on market trends. However, watch to see their vacancy rates. The more apartments they have come on market or sit un-rented the better chance you have to use that as leverage. If they are paying realty fees or are offering “one month free” that’s usually an indication of a lot of inventory.

And landlords, remember, having an excellent tenant can be worth more then the few extra hundred dollars you’d make off higher increases. Horrible tenants are a nightmare and the thought of them stays with you forever. Want to let someone else take care of those tenants and problems, landlord? See what we can do for you at Charlesgate Property Management.

Can’t get the landlord to agree to the rent you need/want? Maybe it is time to buy…. attend one of our home buyer classes and see what options there are for you.