Good tenants but want to raise the rent

[Melissa S Vrobel]

Hi all BP,

I need some guidance.  I have a tenant that has been great.  They moved from my one rental to a larger one and agreed to the rent.  Fast forward 5 yrs and I haven't raised their rent.  I am now losing money because of taxes and insurance which has increased each yr.  It is possible that I may need to raise their rent by $350 just to break even.  My long term goal is to hold but I also offered to sell them the house.

Question is how do I have the difficult conversation about raising the rent on them if they don't want to buy? 

Thanks,

Mel

[Mike Dymski]

The rental rate should be based on market rates rather than what you need to break even.