Hey, landlords, should I offer to pay for half?
January 7, 2020 1:55 PM Subscribe
I rent an apartment in a 3-family building in a very expensive city. My landlords live downstairs and we have a great, friendly relationship. I've lived here 10 years, and they've raised my rent only twice in all that time. I'm paying way under market. I shudder to think how far under!
My fridge needs to be replaced. I told my landlord I would take care of it myself, but I wanted to let him know what was happening. He went ahead and ordered it himself. Should I offer to split it with him as an act of good will? I'd like to, but is that just totally unnecessary?
My fridge needs to be replaced. I told my landlord I would take care of it myself, but I wanted to let him know what was happening. He went ahead and ordered it himself. Should I offer to split it with him as an act of good will? I'd like to, but is that just totally unnecessary?
Unnecessary and potentially complicated - would you expect to take the fridge with you when you left? (seems like not from your question but if you payed for it it could imply partial ownership - he isnt going to want to cash you out for the depreciated value when you leave so id say thank you and go about my merry way).
posted by Exceptional_Hubris at 1:59 PM on January 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by Exceptional_Hubris at 1:59 PM on January 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
Honestly they probably don't care that you're paying under market if they receive consistent rent and you're a friendly tenant that hasn't caused them grief or destroyed their property in 10 years. One would assume they would have raised rent if they had to regardless of whether they liked you as a tenant or not so it doesn't seem to be an issue for them.
It's very generous of you to offer but, no, unless you somehow broke it through negligence, it's on them to replace major appliances for the reasons other posters have stated.
posted by Young Kullervo at 2:02 PM on January 7, 2020 [40 favorites]
It's very generous of you to offer but, no, unless you somehow broke it through negligence, it's on them to replace major appliances for the reasons other posters have stated.
posted by Young Kullervo at 2:02 PM on January 7, 2020 [40 favorites]
No need to do anything here but count your lucky stars, and if you really want to make it right you could consider taking the money you would have spent and donating it to a local food bank or women's shelter.
posted by bleep at 2:29 PM on January 7, 2020 [28 favorites]
posted by bleep at 2:29 PM on January 7, 2020 [28 favorites]
Yeah, don't worry about it, and definitely don't worry about paying too little rent! As a long-term, trouble-free renter you're a landlord's dream - and he'll be profiting as much from your reliable, minimal-maintenance tenancy as he would from having to regularly find new tenants at market rent.
posted by cincinnatus c at 2:30 PM on January 7, 2020 [5 favorites]
posted by cincinnatus c at 2:30 PM on January 7, 2020 [5 favorites]
One thing you can offer to do for your landlord (down the road) to show appreciation is help organize whatever showings are needed when it’s time to find a new tenant.
That’s one of the biggest hassles of being a landlord so having a nice tenant who cleans and stages their home attractively, provides nice photos of the unit (just simple pics of tidy rooms taken with a phone), and makes tours easy to schedule, would probably be a much better gift to him than a few hundred bucks.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 2:57 PM on January 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
That’s one of the biggest hassles of being a landlord so having a nice tenant who cleans and stages their home attractively, provides nice photos of the unit (just simple pics of tidy rooms taken with a phone), and makes tours easy to schedule, would probably be a much better gift to him than a few hundred bucks.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 2:57 PM on January 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
I'm in the exact same scenario (landlords in the same building, friendly with them, renting well below market rate). I've paid for half of several home improvements. I feel good about it, they are obviously good with it. It also accelerates fixes/repairs.
If it's not a hardship for you, it's a decent thing to do. It's not "strictly business" if they are non-corporate landlords who are also your neighbors. It's just decent.
If it is a hardship, by all means don't offer it up.
posted by quarterframer at 2:59 PM on January 7, 2020 [4 favorites]
If it's not a hardship for you, it's a decent thing to do. It's not "strictly business" if they are non-corporate landlords who are also your neighbors. It's just decent.
If it is a hardship, by all means don't offer it up.
posted by quarterframer at 2:59 PM on January 7, 2020 [4 favorites]
Don't worry about rent that's too low. There are any number of horror stories that landlords in the business are familiar with and which I've seen personally. In fact some landlords would be satisfied if all you did was merely keep the place in good condition rent free...
(I've seen horrific tenants bring in pets that pee and poo all over brand new carpet. Or get drunk and smash holes in the walls. Or even never pay rent and be almost impossible to evict under renter-friendly laws. Or maintain the unit so badly it becomes overgrown with mould.)
Also it's more efficient for him to buy the fridge anyway - it should be tax deductible as a business expense. You don't get to expense it yourself. What would be appreciated is probably the labor of organizing those repairs - if my tenant organized a repair themselves and just sent me the bill for them I'd be very happy, and they're probably happier as well because they can do it quicker (rather than me trying to get involved in a triangular discussion to see what time suits both the tenant and the trades person)
posted by xdvesper at 3:04 PM on January 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
(I've seen horrific tenants bring in pets that pee and poo all over brand new carpet. Or get drunk and smash holes in the walls. Or even never pay rent and be almost impossible to evict under renter-friendly laws. Or maintain the unit so badly it becomes overgrown with mould.)
Also it's more efficient for him to buy the fridge anyway - it should be tax deductible as a business expense. You don't get to expense it yourself. What would be appreciated is probably the labor of organizing those repairs - if my tenant organized a repair themselves and just sent me the bill for them I'd be very happy, and they're probably happier as well because they can do it quicker (rather than me trying to get involved in a triangular discussion to see what time suits both the tenant and the trades person)
posted by xdvesper at 3:04 PM on January 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
(I've seen horrific tenants bring in pets that pee and poo all over brand new carpet. Or get drunk and smash holes in the walls. Or maintain the unit so badly it becomes overgrown with mould.)
Or ask if they can park their RV on the front lawn (what?? FUCK NO!), and then do it anyway and then crash their RV into the side of the house and ruin the trim and that part of the roof.
A reliable renter (that doesn't crash their vehicle into the rental) is worth much more than extra rent, trust me.
Also, it'd be one thing to offer to pay half in order to motivate the landlord to replace an existing appliance, but if he already bought one, there is no reason to pitch in. In fact, it makes the tax situation on the business expense a bit weird.
posted by sideshow at 3:16 PM on January 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
Or ask if they can park their RV on the front lawn (what?? FUCK NO!), and then do it anyway and then crash their RV into the side of the house and ruin the trim and that part of the roof.
A reliable renter (that doesn't crash their vehicle into the rental) is worth much more than extra rent, trust me.
Also, it'd be one thing to offer to pay half in order to motivate the landlord to replace an existing appliance, but if he already bought one, there is no reason to pitch in. In fact, it makes the tax situation on the business expense a bit weird.
posted by sideshow at 3:16 PM on January 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
A bad renter who doesn't pay rent requires legal fees and sheriff fees and it still takes time to evict them or a Bad renter who is noisy and causes damage and may have guns and be violent or any number of other Bad renters are out there. You are relatively not noisy, pay rent on time, do not cause damage, etc. It is worthwhile to keep such a tenant; turnover is costly. Keep being a good tenant; that's the best thing.
posted by theora55 at 3:25 PM on January 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by theora55 at 3:25 PM on January 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
Very small time landlord here. I've got two tenants that pay under market rate, are long term, don't tear the place up, don't cause issues, and pay the rent on time every time.
One likes to cook. The range went out, I got him the nicest range I could find without going crazy in price. Much better than the one in my house. He was very happy. I'd like him to stay.
I've given them both surprise rent free months.
I can also tell you tales of tenants vanishing when behind on rent, then going in and finding a fridge with no power and a bunch of meat in it. How about the guy that insisted on playing base guitar so loud I thought he was auditioning for Spinal Tap? His rent went up quite a lot very suddenly and he left. Leaving me about 2 pickup loads of crap to clean out and get to the dump.
Long term no problems tenants are the best thing a landlord can have.
posted by rudd135 at 4:06 PM on January 7, 2020 [13 favorites]
One likes to cook. The range went out, I got him the nicest range I could find without going crazy in price. Much better than the one in my house. He was very happy. I'd like him to stay.
I've given them both surprise rent free months.
I can also tell you tales of tenants vanishing when behind on rent, then going in and finding a fridge with no power and a bunch of meat in it. How about the guy that insisted on playing base guitar so loud I thought he was auditioning for Spinal Tap? His rent went up quite a lot very suddenly and he left. Leaving me about 2 pickup loads of crap to clean out and get to the dump.
Long term no problems tenants are the best thing a landlord can have.
posted by rudd135 at 4:06 PM on January 7, 2020 [13 favorites]
Seconding xdvesper's point about labor being the more valuable and useful gift, if you’re so inclined to give one. When I was a landlord, my Wonderful Tenants earned that appellation by notifying me of an issue quickly (for example, a leaky sink), then taking my preferred trade person’s info and handling the scheduling and managing of the repair/replacement themselves. Then I paid the bill - because it’s my asset! - and we were both happy ever after. Sigh. I miss those tenants.
posted by minervous at 4:06 PM on January 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by minervous at 4:06 PM on January 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: So helpful. Thank you, everyone.
posted by gigondas at 4:30 PM on January 7, 2020
posted by gigondas at 4:30 PM on January 7, 2020
I have a similarly great landlord and tried to show my appreciation in a similar situation by being the one to meet the delivery people, handing the disposal of the old fridge, and otherwise making it as painless as possible for my landlord.
I would personally only offer to pay half (or whatever feels appropriate) in situations where a repair/improvement is fairly optional but is something I want. Outside of that, as far as basic apartment things, I see the paying as my landlord's responsibility (but the monitoring/communication/maintenance as mine).
posted by mosst at 6:07 AM on January 8, 2020
I would personally only offer to pay half (or whatever feels appropriate) in situations where a repair/improvement is fairly optional but is something I want. Outside of that, as far as basic apartment things, I see the paying as my landlord's responsibility (but the monitoring/communication/maintenance as mine).
posted by mosst at 6:07 AM on January 8, 2020
A thing you can do to make your landlord's life easier is to be there when the fridge is delivered, and be ready to move your stuff to the new one.
Go through the old fridge before delivery and toss anything that won't be making the move.
Also clear the path from the door to the kitchen of tripping hazards for whoever is doing delivery.
I'd say just keep being an A+ tenant, without paying for this.
posted by thenormshow at 6:49 AM on January 8, 2020
Go through the old fridge before delivery and toss anything that won't be making the move.
Also clear the path from the door to the kitchen of tripping hazards for whoever is doing delivery.
I'd say just keep being an A+ tenant, without paying for this.
posted by thenormshow at 6:49 AM on January 8, 2020
Was in a similar situation - I offered to cover the delivery (and removal of the old fridge) costs.
posted by porpoise at 10:23 AM on January 8, 2020
posted by porpoise at 10:23 AM on January 8, 2020
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Then it's 100% the landlord's responsibility. Don't offer to split the cost, that would be weird -- and might create confusion over who the fridge actually belongs to. If you want to show your appreciation, write your landlord a nice card to thank him for taking care of it so quickly.
posted by mekily at 1:58 PM on January 7, 2020 [47 favorites]