Creative Ways to Negotiate and
Lower Your Rent
Have you ever wondered how to
negotiate your rent? Negotiating for cheaper rent before you sign or renew a
lease can save you hundreds of dollars a year that you can put towards
investing in your future or getting out of debt faster. But what if you
want to get a lower price in your current apartment?
Sometimes it's easy for us to get
comfortable and complacent with the cost of our rent, even if it's steadily
increasing every year. Below are 11 creative ideas TO to negotiate for lower
rent.
1. Use a strong financial history
as a bargaining chip. If you have a steady income, history of paying on time
and never missing a rent payment, use that as a bargaining tool. Apartment
managers often get so busy reminding the other tenants to pay on time, they
forget the good, consistent tenants. So remind them.
2. Sweeten the pot with your
skills and talents. Each of us has skills and abilities we can use to barter
for lower rent payments. Find out if the complex needs help with marketing and
offer ideas on how they can find new tenants. Keeping the current tenants happy
is a big deal too, so plan a mixer or monthly party. This reinforces a positive
community and might help lower your rent too.
3. Work for the apartment
manager. If you enjoy DIY projects or are good at fixing things, you can offer
to work for the apartment manager or landlord on the side. This is one of the
most obvious things that comes to mind when thinking about how to negotiate
rent. The apartments managers or landlords are often quite busy with tenants
and the superintendents are overworked. Do some of the small things like
painting, cleaning or collecting rent, in exchange for a discount off your
monthly payment.
4. Earn rewards by paying your
rent online. Writing a check as payment is so 1990's, but many landlords and
property companies only take checks or money orders. If you prefer to do
everything electronically (like I do) and earn cash back using a debit/credit
card, you can use a free online service, to pay your rent. Sites like
PayYourRent.com and WilliamPaid.com both offer the option to pay using a cash back
rewards credit/debit card. Cash back for paying rent? Yes, please.
5. Offer to pay a small
deductible on any repairs. A new idea to reducing your rent is to pay a small
deductible on any repairs. Offer to pay up to $150 or so, for small repairs and
maintenance. Of course this creates a higher risk for you, but with the amount
of money saved each month, it could be worth the risk.
6. Negotiate a discount for
paying early. If you can pay your rent a few days early, ask to get a 5% or 10%
discount. You could even pay bi-weekly payments, if they correspond with your
paychecks. This can help your budget, while lowering your expenses. The feeling
of certainty for a landlord, is key.
7. Research the competition.
Knowing the area and competition is one of the best ways to negotiate a better
price. Maybe the complex down the road is offering a better price to their
tenants, and you can use this knowledge as leverage. You want to make sure they
know, they aren't the only place on your list.
8. Sign an extended lease. If you
want to live in the same area for several years, ask if you can sign an
extended lease agreement, for several years. In exchange negotiate for $50 -
$100 off each month's rent. A landlord would much rather have the discounted
but consistent income, than leaving the place vacant.
9. Become the building
superintendent. Another way to reduce the cost of rent, especially in a big
city, is to volunteer as the superintendent. This means you will have to
available and on call for repairs, take out the garbage and perform other tasks
as needed around the building. It will take some work on your part, but the
savings pay off, could be well worth it.
10. Pay 3-6 months in advance.
Paying several months to a year in advance is a great way to "flash some
cash" and get a discounted rate. Calculate the price your willing to pay
each month then multiply by 3 - 6 months, then offer this lump sum as payment.
It's pretty difficult for anyone not to take an good amount of money upfront.
11. Threaten (nicely) to move
out. If you already have a lease that's up for renewal, give yourself plenty of
time to negotiate. If things don't go your way, the landlord knows you will
have time to cancel the lease and move to another, cheaper location. Show them
you are serious about negotiating, but of course do it a nice manner.
In the end, just ask. If you're
proactively figuring out how to negotiate your rent, you're already on the
right track. Even if you try a few negotiating techniques that don't seem to be
working in your favor, the best thing you can do is just ask. Show off your
good financial history, do your research, and be confident when negotiating.
Maybe they won't work with you right now, but at least you did everything you
could to increase your chances. It never hurts to ask.
This post was written by Carrie,
Guest Blogger for ReadyForZero. ReadyForZero is a company that helps people get
out of debt on their own with a simple and free online tool that can automate
and track your debt paydown.
