Finding a rental home that you truly love provides one of the most pleasurable feelings of them all. You will feel overwhelmed with joy when you find a place that exists in the perfect town. You will be enchanted when you learn that the home meets your cosmetic requirements and amenity criteria. You will be delighted when you conduct research, and you discover that the prospective house is down the street from an A-rated school, a police station and a hospital. But, what happens if the rental rate does not fit your budget? Can you negotiate the price once your potential landlord has quoted you a monthly rate? The short answer is maybe.
Using Your Budget to Negotiate
First, trying to stay within your financial budget is wise when you are seeking a home to rent. Far too many people try to go beyond their means and pay for a home that is too expensive for their income level. You should always calculate your disposable income so that you know the rental range that you have to seek. You can only negotiate with this figure slightly without getting into trouble with finances. Therefore, if your disposable income is $1,500 per month, you may want to have a threshold of $1,000 a month for your rental expenses. Disposable income is your total income minus your monthly bills.
Reasons That You May Not Be Able to Negotiate
A few reasons exists as to why you may have a difficult time negotiating the rent with your prospective landlord. We talked with Revid Realty LLC about some of the reasons, and they said, “One reason is the number of applications. Your potential landlord may have hundreds of applicants who are interested in renting the property. If the property is in a low-crime area, and the scenery surrounding it is desirable, then your landlord may not see much of a reason to lower his or her rate.”
Another reason: Applicants who earn more income than you earn may outrank you in qualifications. Additionally, your landlord may have a certain amount that he or she needs to collect each month because of personal expenses. For example, that person may have to pay a mortgage company and a utility company with the rental funds. Some landlords will also want to make a profit, and such people will be unlikely to negotiate to the point in which they are not making any profits. Your potential to negotiate depends greatly upon your landlord’s business sense and the amount of competition for the rental unit.
Reasons That You May Be Able to Negotiate
You may have the ability to outrank other applicants, which will give you negotiation power with your potential landlord. One way you could outrank other applicants is your background. A great deal of people may apply for the same rental home, but some of them may have criminal histories, poor credit reports, or poor rental histories. If you have a clean record and several previous landlords that can speak in your behalf, then you may have great power in persuading landlord to accept your offer. If the property is not gathering a wealth of applications, your negotiation power will increase, as well. Finally, if the landlord is in rush to close a deal, then you may have the opportunity to slip into the home with a lower rental rate.
How to Negotiate the Rent
The most important aspects of rental negotiation are respect and tact. The last thing you want to do is offend the potential landlord. You can make the offer by way of a professional letter, or you may negotiate with the landlord in person. If you write a letter, you will want to briefly explain the reason for your offer and stress how it can benefit the landlord. You should close the letter with the term “respectfully.” If the home renter feels as if he or she can work with you on a reasonable rent, then that person will surely let you know.
