ADU Rental in OC/LA - Rent Too Low?

[Jimmy Chu]

Hello All,

This is my first post. I found BP after I purchased my first home on the border of LA and OC county. I'm currently house hacking and have been able to save enough money to turn my detached garage into a 440 sq ft apartment. Everything is brand new and modern inside. I live on a corner lot and because of that, we have 2 entrances. I'm able to section off the back portion of the lot with a fence so the apartment has its own private driveway and backyard. I'd say the lot is around 1500 sq ft and it's all theirs to enjoy. I have put the apartment up for rent on several websites and found surprisingly large interest in it. I now have a handful of good potential tenants, but I think I may be pricing it too low.

Is it unethical or illegal to allow the tenants to bid on the apartment? How would I go about this?

What's the best way I can talk to potential tenants about increasing the rent right now?

Should I just keep rent as is and increase it in a year?

Thanks for your help!

- Jimmy

[Dan H.]

Did you collect application fees?   You should collect application fees. 

You should have done your rent research prior to listing and definitely prior to accepting any applications. 

Especially if you charged for applying, but even if you did not, I think you should rent at your advertised rate. 

Next time research the market rent prior to listing a unit.  

Good luck