Capitalism Works Well When It's Practiced With a Level of Empathy

[Terra Padgett]

Have Empathy for your Landlord. We all get it...receiving news of a rent increase can be frustrating for a tenant who's balancing their own financial responsibilities. However, Landlords face even greater cost pressures that lead to the increase decisions. Managing all the home's expenses are many times invisible to tenants. They may see it as "greedy landlord trying to get rich off of me." (chuckle chuckle). I wish I could live rich off the marginal dollars left over after all bills are paid. The reality is, rising property taxes, maintenance costs, increase insurance premiums (I'm a broker so don't get me started here), an HOA assessment or annual increase, etc, etc, etc. The increases are not strictly about creating more profit for a Landlord, but rather more often than not, they are necessary to keep a property in good condition (including good financial condition), meet safety standards, and ensure a comfortable living environment.

So before you get ready to attempt to rip your Landlord a new one, first go take it up with the local taxing authority, then go have it out with the insurance industry, then gripe to the neighborhood HOA (if applicable), then maybe settle your disputes with Home Depot/Lowes and any and all trade contractors. More than likely, your Landlord goes down those roads on a regular. While rent increases are never easy, neither are the increases experienced by your Landlord. So we could all have a little more empathy on both sides of the coin.