Mary J. McCoy-Dressel

The Future Holds… Holds What? Good question. I’d like to know, and I will soon. This title could refer to a lot of things. Health? Finances? Life. Today my post refers to the high cost of apartment rental fees.

Skyrocketing rental fees are knocking at my door. It’s happening to many. Are you experiencing it?

If someone doesn’t do something about these high rental costs or the costs of buying a new home, we’ll see more homeless people. This is not a political rant, so let’s not make it one.

My apartment here was remodeled a short time ago. Now the owner’s plan is to remodel every apartment, including the one I’m in, in this complex and the one I transferred from (same owners) replacing them with a more luxurious design and a layout redesign, which equals higher rental fees. My cousin is a victim of not having his lease renewed at the other complex because of the remodel plan. Tenants over there have to move when their lease is up. It’s an increase I would not qualify for if I still lived there. Neither can some of the other tenants.

My cousin moved the last week of July, but he was able to take one of the newly remodeled apartments at a much, much higher rental fee. It used to be fifty dollars was a huge increase from one year to the next. Our incomes don’t go up two to three hundred dollars a month!

If apartment owners read this, I’ll likely get brow-beaten, but I have to blow off steam. Now, we’re talking about a two to three hundred dollar or more increase. It seems, in my opinion, apartment owners in general have found a way to increase rent, get rid of lower income tenants, and attract those who can afford to pay their high dollar.

Granted, many apartments do need an update. Making an apartment pretty to the eye, doesn’t mean it changes what’s behind the walls in older complexes like plumbing and electrical.

What makes me so mad, and I can only speak for where I am, is this is happening to an entire complex, and not everyone can pay the increase. They don’t have a choice except pay or get out. Get out they say! It isn’t easy to find an affordable apartment these days, let alone pay the rental fees and moving expenses. My cousin was devastated when he received his letter of non-renewal. His first questions was: “What did I do to not have my release renewed?” 😥 He didn’t do anything.

This is not only happening here. A friend lives in a different complex in a different city, and she received a letter saying they are remodeling when their lease is up. I guess they too have a choice to take a newly remodeled apartment, but at a higher rent. She’s also on a fixed income. Her rent is also climbing to the “market value.” Then she received another letter saying they’d remodel the kitchen while she lived there. I “heard” through the grave vine, the same could happen where I am now.

Thankfully, I’m lucky at this moment. At least for now, but the clock is ticking. Had I still lived in the other complex, my lease would “not” have been renewed. With my transfer over here, my lease now expires a year from when I moved in here. However, my reprieve is short, because my lease renewal is not far away.

Remember the awful smell that drove me out of the other place? Well, I strongly feel that God’s hand was in this whole move thing as far as I’m concerned. If not, I would have been in Timbuctoo or who knows where after July 31st.

The last I heard about where I am now, they ARE renewing our leases and not, ahem, “kicking us out” so they can remodel. “Kicking us out” are my words, not theirs. At least that was the plan when I asked my manager if they were doing the same thing to us here. Months have passed since I asked, though.

I’m only blowing off steam about this place because no one knows where I live. I don’t want to call out my complex. They aren’t the only apartment owners doing this. New managers here walked into a mess when they came, anyway, so now they have to deal with this. They’re doing a wonderful job with the mess that was left for them.

However, while in the office, I asked and they gave me an estimate on my upcoming rent, saying it’s a market value increase. Yikes, the increase is frightening. OUCH. Ouch!

I don’t know what’s going to happen, not only to me, from this point on. In the meantime, I’m still cleaning out what didn’t get cleaned out with my last move, because like it or not, another move is in my future.

If I don’t plan on staying here, then I have until the 1st of September to find a new place because I need to give a two-month notice. If I can’t find a more affordable apartment, I’ll live here another year. When I moved here, I hadn’t planned on it only being for one year, so I do want to stay. God led me here. I have faith the same thing will happen when it’s time to do it again. The local news had a spotlight on rising rental rates this past week. They mentioned getting a roommate might be the answer. What do you think?

Please, if you leave a comment, keep it non-political, because I will delete it. I don’t like saying it but… MY blog. MY rules.

Thanks for reading. Have a wonderful weekend.