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General Landlording & Rental Properties

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Kamal H.
  • Real Estate Investor
  • Berkeley, CA
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How much should I ask for off of Rent?

Kamal H.
  • Real Estate Investor
  • Berkeley, CA
Posted Jul 23 2010, 07:09

Hello, I am currently working things out with my friend/roomate/landlord to settle and pay rent. So, the crazy thing is that both he and I got lazy and fell far behind on rental payments so I haven't paid anything in 3 years--I know this is odd but please read on. So, I owe roughly around $30K in rent and utilities which is fine as I have the money; we just haven't had the chance to crunch all the numbers and transfer funds. My roomate's family owns the home we live in; he "kinda" is the landlord along with his mother.

However, over the past few months they have been renovating the bathroom. I think they just found the cheapest contractor they could because it's taken over 3 months and they are still doing work. For 5 days a week, from Apr 20th to now (Jul 23) and ongoing there has been a contractor here around 8 hours a day. I'd estimate about half of the time he's here I couldn't use the bathroom. He's a nice guy and all but it's annoying and I know that it shouldn't take this long to finish. In any case back in May, 1 month into the renovation I talked with my roomate/landlord and he said he would give me a free month of rent for the inconvenience. That was in May though and I'm still dealing with this at the end of July.

My question is, what is a fair amount to ask in compensation for the amount of inconvenience I'm going through? I'm not looking to fleece the guy but I've learned that if I don't say anything he'll just take advantage of the situation. I live in CA; my rent is $600/mo + around $150/mo in utilities. What is a fair amount to ask off of rent to compensate? I am hoping landlords and renters can give me honest opinions.

Thanks!

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