Any other landlords noticing huge drops in rent??

[Anonymous]

I’m an “accidental landlord” with just one rental property in MoCo. It’s now been on the market for 4.5 months with a series of price decreases.

I initially listed it at $4,050/month, which was reasonable because my last tenant was paying $3,975/month. However, I think in the next few days I am going to have to lower it again from $3,300/month to $3,200/month, which is the exact rate it rented for in 2019—think how much inflation there has been since then!

I’ve also noticed a marked decline in the quality of potential tenants. I’ve gotten so many inquiries from people with substandard credit scores that I now review/reiterate the qualification requirements before doing a showing. The potential tenants that do seem qualified are asking for discounts and almost seem offended that I wouldn’t be rolling out the red carpet for them. I’ve been renting out this property for eight years, and i’ve never seen this before.

My unit is a condo, and tons of new buildings have been going up in MoCo—I wonder if that’s part of it. More generally, are any other landlords noticing similar issues? Are we actually in a recession, but the media can’t report on it because of the election?

It seems that home *prices* have been holding up in the area, so I wonder if there is something going on in the rental market that has been masked by the relatively benign state of home sales. Or maybe it’s something specific to my unit/building/specific location.

Either way, this is very concerning, so can any other landlords share what they’re seeing?

[Anonymous]

Your costs of ownership are largely unaffected by inflation.

[Anonymous]

I would not pay $4000 to live in a condo in MoCo. Landlords are greedy and trying to take advantage of renters.

[Anonymous]

I wonder if this is the shifting population of Montgomery county and the glut of condos/apts that they sold us out to the developers for...

[Anonymous]

That’s high for a condo. You can rent a house for that.

[Anonymous]

It's not a good time of year to find tenants. And if the place looks dated or run down, tenants have better options. If you have a class b property it's ok but you will not get class a tenants. Are you allowing pets? That can help you find interested tenants.

[Anonymous]

How have you improved the property since 2019?

[Anonymous]

Only the ones who ask too much. 1-bedroom in out building with parking for $2000 went fast. The one that is $2500 without parking still sits. It is slightly bigger but not as nice. Third one came available with parking at $2100. It will be rented within a month.
Condos for sale still sit as it is cheaper to rent than to buy until the rent reaches $2600-$2700.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m an “accidental landlord” with just one rental property in MoCo. It’s now been on the market for 4.5 months with a series of price decreases.

I initially listed it at $4,050/month, which was reasonable because my last tenant was paying $3,975/month. However, I think in the next few days I am going to have to lower it again from $3,300/month to $3,200/month, which is the exact rate it rented for in 2019—think how much inflation there has been since then!

I’ve also noticed a marked decline in the quality of potential tenants. I’ve gotten so many inquiries from people with substandard credit scores that I now review/reiterate the qualification requirements before doing a showing. The potential tenants that do seem qualified are asking for discounts and almost seem offended that I wouldn’t be rolling out the red carpet for them. I’ve been renting out this property for eight years, and i’ve never seen this before.

My unit is a condo, and tons of new buildings have been going up in MoCo—I wonder if that’s part of it. More generally, are any other landlords noticing similar issues? Are we actually in a recession, but the media can’t report on it because of the election?

It seems that home *prices* have been holding up in the area, so I wonder if there is something going on in the rental market that has been masked by the relatively benign state of home sales. Or maybe it’s something specific to my unit/building/specific location.

Either way, this is very concerning, so can any other landlords share what they’re seeing?

You could get a SFH for that rent! I would never pay $4K to rent a condo in MoCo.
A condo and not a new condo at that does not get top rental income. There are many options for rentals on the market so renters have options.

[Anonymous]

There was an article in NY yesterday that sales of smaller lower priced coops in older buildings that are normally slower selling are really picking up as Renters are sick of landlords raising rents. They just had enough.

Also prior rent could be a mean you charged too much, after all tennant left.

[Anonymous]

You have to think like a tenant to find out if your rental rate is reasonable or not.
Try to search in the neighborhood for rental apartments at same cost and see what comes up.
Probably there are more new apartments with more incentives and allowing pets you are competing with.
It might be best to sell it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if this is the shifting population of Montgomery county and the glut of condos/apts that they sold us out to the developers for...

Ding, ding, ding!

[Anonymous]

This could be MoCo where demand is low and job creation is also on lower trajectory.

My experience is different in DC and VA and the rent is on upwards direction. Condo could be another factor that it is hard to rent now.

[Anonymous]

You’ve gone way over what people are willing to pay for a condo.

[Anonymous]

My wife and I are renting a nice 2 BD/2BA condo in downtown Bethesda for 2850/mo. The only way we'd be open to paying 4000/mo for a condo rental is if it is a large, decently updated unit in a nice building near metro.

As other posters noted, you can rent a SFH or a large TH for 4000/mo in MoCo.