Washington DC rent increase and DC property registration

[Brad Wood]

This question is specific to Washington, DC, but related to rent increases. I have posted this in the local DC forum but wanted to check here as well.

I am a new home owner and have an english basement rental with its own CofO. The lease expires in June, therefore I am in a scramble to understand the rules around rent increases.

Current rent is $1550 and I would like to raise it to $1600. In fact, I may have gotten ahead of myself by already notifying the tenant of my intention to raise it $1600. This amounts to approximately a 3.2% rent increase, which is likely above the CPI+2% on the OTA site, however this is my only property and my understanding is that guidance may only apply to rent controlled properties.

So my question is, am I okay with that rent increase or do I need to stick within CPI+2%? In either event, I haven't "registered" my property with the city. Do I need to do that or anything to ensure our rental property can stand up against any challenge from the tenant (not that I have any reason to believe they have an issue or will take an issue at this stage). I only took possession this fall and only received the CoO a month ago so am unclear if I need to file any additional paperwork or go through steps with the city to ensure i'm not in violation of any ordinance.

Thanks for your guidance BP!

[Russell Brazil]

Rent control only happens when you have 5 or more units. You are exempt