How do you raise rent without feeling like a scumbag?

[Todd Morris]

Hi everyone!  I'm so thrilled to be a member of BP!!!  So I live in a quaint tourist town in the Poconos and just purchased a my first rental property across from my house with 5x Tenants who've been there for years and are paying far below the market rent for this area.  They are currently on a month-to-month since the previous owner never bothered to renew their leases over the years.  My partner (wisely?) think we should just jack the rent to the current market levels which would be $300 to 400 higher than what they are currently paying, but I feel terribly guilty doing so since the tenants seem like good people without a ton of money and I don't want to turn their lives upside down.  I also lived in rentals in NYC for 26 years, so I definitely know what that feels like.  Love your opinions!  Thanks!