Opinion on rent hike for land tenant

Opinion on rent hike for land tenant

Rental Property Investor · San Marino, CA · Member since 2011 · 398 posts · 144 votes

Just wanted to get the BP opinion and some feedback here.

I own a 10,000 sf piece of land in good area with excellent and problem-free retail tenant. There are no improvements, she is just renting the land. I have no plans to re-develop land in the near future and she is asking for a lease extension.

The lease extension would last through 2020 and I'm currently enjoying 5% annual rent increases. However, her current rent is about 20%-25% below market based on a casual loopnet survey. If she left, I would say that it would take me between 3-6 months to find another tenant or another use as the area is pretty decent in a Southern California suburb.

I'm looking at two options:

(1) Give her the lease extension with continued 5% annual increases - this would ensure that I don't "rock the boat" and keep a "headache-free" situation going.

(2) Ask for a step up to (or near) market rent with 3-5% rent increases. Of course, here I'd be rocking the boat and risking that I lose a tenant.

I've read plenty of times on BP that keeping a good tenant is worth a lot. Would appreciate any thoughts from the board.

Thanks!

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  • Investor · Raleigh, NC · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 708 votes
    12y

    @Jason Mak i'm usually more in the "don't rock the boat" camp (to a point, anyway), but it really depends on the situation. i.e. what is the land used for? Parking lot, agriculture, recreational use, etc? How easy will it be for the renter to find another option if she bails out on you?

  • Rental Property Investor · San Marino, CA · Member since 2011 · 398 posts · 144 votes
    12y

    @andrew S - Thanks for the response Current tenant is using the land for a nursery (selling plants). Not sure what better options she has as my location is quite nice.

    In theory, I should raise rents but this has been an excellent tenant and has been headache free for the last 8 years.

  • Investor · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    12y

    Well, how about asking her to meet you in the middle?

    If she's 20% below market, ask her to go up 10% and give her comps that show that she'll still below market.

  • Rental Property Investor · San Marino, CA · Member since 2011 · 398 posts · 144 votes
    12y

    @Michaela G.

    certainly an option!

  • Investor · Chicago, IL · Member since 2009 · 566 posts · 274 votes
    12y

    @Jason Mak

    I think if you approach the situation in the right way you can avoid losing her as a tenant. If she has been there for 8 years, has her operation completely set up in this location, and is probably well known in the area then I doubt she is going to get up and leave quickly. I would do some more in-depth research to really make sure she is below market rent. You want to make sure she doesn't have a better option close by to move to because of the rent increase. What does the 20-25% rent increase look like in sheer dollars on an annualized basis? Are you able to lease the property or will you need to get a leasing agent involved? If you have to get a leasing agent involved then you can tac that on to your vacancy period. I think @Michaela G. idea of meeting her in the middle might be a good compromise but at the end of the day you can feel her out. I would be cautious about pushing the rent above what she can actually pay. Has she submitted recent financial statements to you? You might want to underwrite her again before you sign a lease renewal.

    Good luck!

  • Glendale, CA · Member since 2013 · 13 posts · 0 votes
    12y

    Besides a nursery, what else would this land be good for?

  • Rental Property Investor · San Marino, CA · Member since 2011 · 398 posts · 144 votes
    12y

    thanks for the feedback. This land could alternatively be used for a parking lot for the two adjacent restaurants - I own that building too. It's adjacent to a Metro stop so its a pretty valuable plot of land, I just don't have the time to look into redeveloping it yet.

    I don't think it would come to the point where my tenant would move as we have a good relationship and she probably doesn't have any better options but given that this is such a low maintenance tenant, I also want to keep it that way. I'll keep you guys updated! Thanks

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