For us, a 12 month lease is preferable - but I'm not sure how much we're willing to move on rent.
You must remember that the exact reason we stay here and tolerate the poor condition of the house is because of the affordable rent. The house is full of struggling artists and musicians who would prefer to pay less rent than live in nicer conditions. I think you'd have a hard time renting it to anyone else without doing some major renovations.
For one, not only is the foundation uneven (giving the floors a slight slant), but also there are literal holes in the floor (especially in the bathroom and kitchen) and cracks around the baseboards which allow all types of insects access to the house - especially cockroaches, which kinda freak me out. We're also visited from above by some kind of rodents living in the attic. It could be rats or even squirrels or possums that have found a hole in the roof. I don't know, but they sound big as they scurry around up there.
Also, the house is not energy efficient, and with 5 rooms needing 5 air conditioners and 5 furnaces, our utility bills are ridiculously high in the summer and winter.
Finally, I'd ask you to consider how despite the condition of the house, as long as I've lived here we haven't asked you for a single thing. We battle the pests as well as we can and we even do our own repairs, going as far as calling our own plumber and replacing a broken fridge.
All this said, I also understand that housing prices have risen in Austin, and don't expect that we should immune. If it means you'll sign another 12 month lease, I'll offer $1375/mo, up from $1250. If not, I'd prefer to rent on a month-to-month basis.
Sincerely,
Dallion
Very sorry to hear about your rent increase. We just had a substantial increase too. How much more is the landlord asking for in rent?
ReplyDeleteHe didn't give us a price, he basically asked: "how much is another year worth to ya?"
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to say.
The house is probably 60 years old and pretty run down, but it's also super close to downtown, 2 blocks from town lake, and it's in an increasingly artsy area. It also has a pretty nice backyard adorned by a firepit, rope-swing, and vegetable garden. For these reasons combined with the low rent, I definitely don't want to be looking for another place soon!