San Francisco Rental Squeeze
August 24, 2015 6:08 AM Subscribe
San Francisco apartment renting - is this how it really works? I'm looking for a new apartment in way-too-hot rental market of San Francisco. I found a place, and the unit looks great, but dealing with the property management company in a short amount of time has been a hassle (yes, welcome to San Francisco).
The listing on craigslist states plain and simple what the monthly rental rate is, but the property management company said over the phone that it's $50/mo more, and has required a $1,000 "holding fee" to hold the unit while the full lease agreement is done. Is there a Rent Ordinance that protects me as a renter and holds the lease to the original listing price on CL? I know YANML and all, but any links to the right reference would help me a lot. I tried looking on the Rent Board site but it's not easy to sift through. The rental agent already told me "take it or leave it" as there's a line of 4 other tenants happy to take the place.
The listing on craigslist states plain and simple what the monthly rental rate is, but the property management company said over the phone that it's $50/mo more, and has required a $1,000 "holding fee" to hold the unit while the full lease agreement is done. Is there a Rent Ordinance that protects me as a renter and holds the lease to the original listing price on CL? I know YANML and all, but any links to the right reference would help me a lot. I tried looking on the Rent Board site but it's not easy to sift through. The rental agent already told me "take it or leave it" as there's a line of 4 other tenants happy to take the place.
You could try calling the Rent Board directly and asking a counselor. Why is a holding deposit necessary--are you not moving in right away? If you wanted the apartment, why couldn't you sign a lease and pay rent/security deposits early if needed? I've never heard of a holding deposit around here, though I'm renting in the East Bay right now. Personally, it would make me suspicious, along with the fact that the property management company falsely advertised the price...I would imagine further problems with them down the line. I would keep looking, as hard as it might be.
posted by three_red_balloons at 8:06 AM on August 24, 2015
posted by three_red_balloons at 8:06 AM on August 24, 2015
Most landlords are set up to get your lease signature and wire transfer of your upfront costs on the same day they offer you the unit, or the next business day if you get the unit offered on a weekend or afternoon. If YOU are asking for more time, it's not unreasonable for them to charge you. If they are not able to get this very basic business done in the customary (immediate) time-frame, it is a red flag.
Rents change all the time; if it's more than a few days after the ad was posted, a small change in rent is not unreasonable. If you were offered the unit at x rent and they are now saying x + $50, that's a red flag, as it shows that their business processes are unreliable.
posted by MattD at 8:28 AM on August 24, 2015
Rents change all the time; if it's more than a few days after the ad was posted, a small change in rent is not unreasonable. If you were offered the unit at x rent and they are now saying x + $50, that's a red flag, as it shows that their business processes are unreliable.
posted by MattD at 8:28 AM on August 24, 2015
I'm guessing the 'holding fee' is sort of a signing bonus. I've heard of lots of folks having to pay something like this to get an apartment in San Francisco. Crazy, but that's the market. If this landlord sounds shady, definitely feel free to move on, but just be aware that these sorts of shenanagins are super common right now. I'm not sure why it would be illegal if you haven't yet signed a lease -- of course your landlord can't up your rent in the middle of the lease, but before you sign I think it's sort of up to them to set the price. If you don't want to deal with it, you should plan on either spending a lot more time looking or looking in the East Bay instead (or some other nearby area - I just know the East Bay best).
posted by rainbowbrite at 8:56 AM on August 24, 2015
posted by rainbowbrite at 8:56 AM on August 24, 2015
You could also call the San Francisco Tenants Union. Their website has lots of tenants rights info.
posted by oneear at 9:23 AM on August 24, 2015
posted by oneear at 9:23 AM on August 24, 2015
Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but I've offered, or been asked for, holding fees in many different states. As I've always encountered them, they're to prove commitment to signing a lease, and will be applied to the first month's rent. For example when I rented a $500/mo apartment in Austin six or seven years ago, I gave the landlords a $200 check when they showed me the place, as a show of good faith that I wanted it and would be ready to sign a lease the following day. I was under the impression this was pretty common in situations where you want the apartment but for whatever reason won't leave the showing with a signed lease in hand.
At any rate, I would clarify that it's just to hold the apartment, and that your thousand bucks will be applied to the first month's rent. Get that in writing if you need to. But as far as I can tell, this is totally normal.
posted by tapir-whorf at 10:27 AM on August 24, 2015
At any rate, I would clarify that it's just to hold the apartment, and that your thousand bucks will be applied to the first month's rent. Get that in writing if you need to. But as far as I can tell, this is totally normal.
posted by tapir-whorf at 10:27 AM on August 24, 2015
I encountered a holding fee in Los Angeles a few times. It was always explicit that the holding fee would either be applied against my deposit or first month's rent, or returned minus a very small fee (like a $50 "showing fee" or "processing fee" or something, I can't remember, it's been quite a few years) if I decided I did not want the apartment.
posted by erst at 11:51 AM on August 24, 2015
posted by erst at 11:51 AM on August 24, 2015
I would call the SFTU. I got a place here 13 months ago and did not have to deal with any of the bullshit you're describing.
posted by Aizkolari at 5:35 PM on August 24, 2015
posted by Aizkolari at 5:35 PM on August 24, 2015
As a landlord I would never tell someone the rent is now $X+50 because that would raise the question of discrimination. Is this landlord telling all callers the price is $X+50, or just women / people whose name or accent suggests they might not be white / people with children / tech workers? It's not hard to edit a CL listing to have the accurate rent. I'd probably avoid this person / company.
posted by slidell at 9:56 PM on August 24, 2015
posted by slidell at 9:56 PM on August 24, 2015
In hot markets, you put up with a lot. Where I live, any sort of non-refundable move-in fee is illegal, but I went ahead and paid a $400 move-in fee because I loved the place, almost all places charge these bogus fees, and if I didn't do it, there was a line of people behind me.
Rents do fluctuate and if you don't go after a place right away and get a rent in writing, they are bound to say that the price changed due to market conditions. I'm not sure what the "holding fee" you describe is -- in my experience, you have to submit a deposit right away to hold the apartment and it's open until they get a check. As long as the "holding fee" counts toward your deposit/first month or you get it back, I don't see the problem. But you should get that clarified in writing. Make sure this is a legit property management company too.
posted by AppleTurnover at 11:43 PM on August 24, 2015
Rents do fluctuate and if you don't go after a place right away and get a rent in writing, they are bound to say that the price changed due to market conditions. I'm not sure what the "holding fee" you describe is -- in my experience, you have to submit a deposit right away to hold the apartment and it's open until they get a check. As long as the "holding fee" counts toward your deposit/first month or you get it back, I don't see the problem. But you should get that clarified in writing. Make sure this is a legit property management company too.
posted by AppleTurnover at 11:43 PM on August 24, 2015
Does this fee go anywhere? Like does it later count as your deposit or anything like that?
Because in seattle, where the rental market is also getting completely batshit bonkers ridiculous the pay a big deposit/holding fee AND application fee before they even approve you thing has become depressingly common, and i've both encountered it several times and heard of it being A Thing quite a bit.
But, it's generally refundable minus some background check/application amount, and if you do get the place that money doesn't just go into a black hole... it counts towards whatever deposit/first/last/etc you were going to have to pay anyways.
I would leave laughing if some place asked me to put down $1000 that they would just get to keep if they didn't accept me. I mean, i believe places are trying it now and i've even heard of stuff like that happening here, but hahahaha fuck no.
posted by emptythought at 1:35 AM on August 25, 2015
Because in seattle, where the rental market is also getting completely batshit bonkers ridiculous the pay a big deposit/holding fee AND application fee before they even approve you thing has become depressingly common, and i've both encountered it several times and heard of it being A Thing quite a bit.
But, it's generally refundable minus some background check/application amount, and if you do get the place that money doesn't just go into a black hole... it counts towards whatever deposit/first/last/etc you were going to have to pay anyways.
I would leave laughing if some place asked me to put down $1000 that they would just get to keep if they didn't accept me. I mean, i believe places are trying it now and i've even heard of stuff like that happening here, but hahahaha fuck no.
posted by emptythought at 1:35 AM on August 25, 2015
This thread is closed to new comments.
This is possibly a violation of (California's) protection against false advertising in CA Code 17500. However, to do anything about this, you would need either the support of some California state agency or San Francisco city agency to help you in court (which is unlikely) or a lawyer (which is a waste of your money). Further, I'm not aware of any restrictions against landlords allowing "bidding" between prospective tenants. In other words, if it was advertised for $x and one tenant offered $x + $50, that would be a legal and appropriate reason to offer the apartment to that tenant.
Your chance of getting this apartment at the rate advertised is precisely zero. At the risk of being cynical, the correct course of action here is to find another apartment.
posted by saeculorum at 6:23 AM on August 24, 2015 [1 favorite]