I live in Boston, where the housing situation is a bit crazy. I found a couple people that are looking to move in the summer, and we did find this place that seems perfect. It's a professionally managed building, the location is close to our workplaces, everything is new, though a bit small, the rent is reasonable for the area and the amenities.
The only problem is that they are asking for a March move-in date, which is a pain for many of us since a vast majority of Boston leases are in September. That means we would have to look for subleases, and move on a relatively short notice.
I am wondering what kind of things may I negotiate for before signing the lease. One advantage of looking for rental right now in the city is that not many renters are looking. Even the manager mentioned that they really want to get back on the September cycle, since they have been having trouble getting their units rented.
I've been monitoring the surrouding areas, and many units seem to be on the markets for many months at a time (many even since November), and several listings have even lower their asking prices over the last couple weeks. I feel like we have some leverage here, but not sure what it can be used for.
I don't think I can negotiate on the rent itself. But what other things can I possibly ask for, that may make the move-in situation easier for us (is it normal to ask reimbursement for moving truck rental, for example?)? I also realize asking for a later move-in date is basically the same as asking for less rent, so I'm not sure how easy that would be either.
January 07, 2017 at 05:02PM
