Landlord Nuts or Not?

I also had a similar experience with my landlord recently, having been a good tenant for many years. making sure the rent was always paid on time, and paying for repairs myself without wanting to get reimbursed from him.


When he informed me he wanted to increase my rent (for the second time in a 12-month period) I wrote to ask him to reconsider, bearing in mind the global economic crisis, and also the fact that he had not spent a cent on maintenance in over 6 years and the paint was starting to chip and there was a lot of wear and tear. Because I really liked the flat and did not want to move out, I told him I would be prepared to pay a little bit extra, but not the unreasonable amount he was asking for, so I wrote to ask him to contact mel me so we could reach an agreement about the amount to be paid.


Well, he chose to ignore my letter completely and did not even have the courtesy to contact me to acknowledge receiving my letter and basically tell me to sod off because he was still wanting the increase.


Well, guess what, when I wrote to him a second letter advising I was going to be moving out, he immediately wrote back, pretended he'd been on holidays and said he didn't receive my first letter, and said that in view of the economic crisis he wanted to withdraw his letter asking for a rental increase and told me I could stay. I thanked him for his generous offer but told him I had already found somewhere else to live and so it was too late.


When I move out in a couple of weeks' time, he will have to spend money on maintenance work, maybe not much but he will have to freshen the flat up nonetheless, money to advertise with an agency, maybe have the flat empty for a couple of months, and be lucky to find someone to pay what I had been paying him.


So, no, the only person nuts is your landlord if he thinks he can get away with this.

Kamaole, I would recommend that when you write to him to inform him that you will not be renewing the lease, you tell him that you would like to offset your two months' deposit (if that's what you paid up front) in lieu of paying rent for the last two months. It's much easier to do it like this and you won't have the hassle of trying to get your deposit back.

Kamaole - I'm in a similar boat to you mate, although we live in Clearwater Bay. Excellent tenants for 6 years - never paid rent late & landlady now wants a 20% increase. We love the flat (old style with character albeit rundown in places) & were ready to bite the bullet. However, having spent a week looking around there are loads of places out there at the mo. It's a renters/buyers market and you set the price. Some HK landlords are incredibly stubborn tho and for face reasons will rather have the flat vacant for months than retract a price they've put their name to. Good luck!

Some really good advise here.


My last place the Landlord was a shocker. Don't be fooled by them, they'll try anything to get the money. It's all about the money.


P.S. moving AGAIN????? you said you've been there for nearly 8 years? hardly transient.

Hi Kamaole, I've sent you a pm.

One aspect that hasn't been mentioned, but may not be relevant in this case, is lock in periods. In the current climate the last thing I'd want do is move to a new place and take on a minimum 14 month (12 + 2) lease. I'd rather pay the same or even more but retain flexibility to move with a couple of months' notice. If your lease is being renegotiated at this time and you would be locked in for 14 month in any event, then it looks like you might as well move on.

I understand the rationale for a new lease but I didn't know if rollover leases (after 2 years) go back to the minimum 12+2 lease period or continue on a 2 month notice basis. If the former then there seems no advantage to staying other than avoiding expense and hassle of moving.

In that case, if I were seriously concerned about continued job prospects then I would look into the viability of putting stuff in storage and going down the serviced apartment route. It may not be a runner and some may prefer to take the risk of a lock in and then leave under cover of darkness if things go belly up. That's not for me - I'd want to leave legally.

I'm sure you're right, LG. If we did it, we'd be moving to a much smaller place and so our outgoings would likely be less than now but it certainly wouldn't represent the same value of a regular rental. I prize flexibility and the saint (trapped deep) inside me would make it difficult to do a runner'. Luckily, it's not an issue for us right now. It might become one and I'd then go down the amicable negotiation route. If I were looking to rent a new place now, I'd be trying to get a lower rate, or a 6 month break clause, or both. I'd not be looking to buy.