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Hey Simplifiers,
When rent goes up, it’s always the same advice coming at you fast:
“Rework your budget.”
“Cut back.”
“Find extra income.”
All solid suggestions, if rent increases were caused by bad spreadsheets.
But they’re not.
They’re caused by decisions made without you in the room. Which means the first step isn’t adjustment, it’s awareness.
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Let’s talk about what might be better advice that helps.
1️⃣ Do NOT absorb the increase immediately
Most tenants quietly accept rent hikes and then scramble to adjust the rest of their lives around it. That reaction gives all the power to the increase.
Before changing anything:
Pause payments if legally allowed
Read your lease line by line
Check local rent increase limits (many people don’t know these exist)
You are not being difficult by asking questions.
2️⃣ Ask for concessions, not mercy
Landlords expect silence — not negotiation.
Instead of asking for “help,” ask for trade-offs:
delayed increase
smaller increase for longer lease
waived fees
repairs or utilities included
Many increases are negotiable, especially when vacancy costs more than compromise.
3️⃣ Treat housing as a short-term strategy, not a life sentence
When rent becomes unsustainable, the smartest move is sometimes temporary destabilization to avoid long-term damage.
That can look like:
staying put while planning an exit
moving before finances collapse
downsizing strategically instead of reactively
sharing space temporarily to regain margin
Stability doesn’t always mean staying. Sometimes it means leaving before you’re forced to.
This Week’s Action Step
Look up your city’s rent increase rules
Read your lease with the question: “Where do I have leverage?”
Draft (don’t send yet) a negotiation email
Identify your exit number — the rent that makes staying impossible
Pressure forces movement, but without clarity, that movement usually benefits someone else, not you.
With care,
C
Founder of The Simple Adult 🩶
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