How to reduce your rent

The housing (rental) rental affordability issue was raised again in an interview by Wendy Harmer on ABC 702 - people paying more than 50% of their take home pay are well entrenched into housing stress. It may be true to a degree if household income is low when disposable income is minimal after housing costs are paid but living costs do not increase simply because you live in a more expensive house ie it then becomes a lifestyle choice as to where you spend your money. Eg. $500 rent on $1000/wk net income = 50% with $500 for living costs vs $750 rent on $1500/wk net income = 50% (ratio doesn't change) but there is an additional $250/wk for living costs.

Are both households under the same affordability pressure? Or is rent/income ratio too simplistic a measure of affordability?

Obviously, the same argument can be used for mortgage affordability too.

 

Live in your car
Live in a tent
Move into rental and don't pay then move I to the next one rented in someone else name, rinse and repeat. Works in Elizabeth lol

 

I think points 1 and 5 apply to one of my tenants. She landscaped the backyard and I gave her a week rent free. She has done many other improvements that other tenants would have wanted a handyman to fix. I've offered her money but she says no. I'm not raising her rent once the lease ends so she will be incentivised to stay. I could justify an increase based on the area, but she's more valuable than an extra $10-20 a week...at least for another year. I want to tell her pleeeease never leave me!!

 

I rented an old concrete ex-commission place a few years ago. Had a bad mould issue and I was the only tenant who had managed to control it - kind of. Freezing in winter and the landlord refused to put a fan in the bathroom - which didn't help with the mould.

After a year or two, the landlord started saying he intended to put the rent up. I started replying that I would need to move out if that happened. And I would have.

He never did raise it ( and he did very well to keep me - as I really looked after that place!)

 

Nice post. Got me thinking again, is this a first world country problem?
People dont want to live with parents or grandparents, they want to be "independent".
They also dont want to share, because they "value their privacy".
They want to live in some trendy place, do bunch every weekend, views.
They want to buy all the latest gear, travel to the nice holiday spot.
And then they cannot save up a deposit to buy a property. So they continue to be a renter.
And then they complain that they cant afford it....

I have seen many cases of good negotiations: sensible tenants with sensible expectations and sensible owners. Have also seen the same number of the opposite. Ah joy of property management.

 

That's what I don't get: sharing was really good fun with friends! A little more political with strangers but they often became friends for the time being, anyway. We used to have inter household bbq's.

 

I've never seen a good mould issue (unless you count white moulds on cheese).

 

Agree. Some days I much prefer strangers than relos!

 

Not just 'they'. Pretty much the entire community wants these things.

I shared for decades - most recently until age forty, before I bought my house. Always intended to rent out a room in my popr too - if the Reno ever gets finished!

 

Careful with trading rent for work. Soon, they MAY expect trading rent for every small thing they do that isn't even required.

If my tenant is good, I usually send them a gift basket. If my tenant tells me something is broken and they say then can fix it themselves - I assess the job for risk and let them do it. I'll give them extra money when I pay for the parts. I don't let them deduct it in rent - I just pay them outside of rent. Keeps things simple.

 

One of my tenants renovated the whole flat for me, new bathroom, polished floorboards, built in wardrobes. She organised everything I just paid for it (good prices) and gave her a cheaper rent (plus she got a renovated flat).

 

1. Find dirt on PM
2. Blackmail PM

 

Haha I'm the same. Need to bring my 3 bathrooms to a respectable level!

 

I think if the tenants are nice to the PM / owner then it's harder for PM and landlord to increase the rent. It's in our human nature to reciprocate niceness.

If you make life easier for PM and owner then I think they will give the tenant concessions.

I do student accommodation so if tenants are nice, when they go holidays I normally give them a discount as they are not using as much electricity and water. (I would like to keep the good tenants.)