pm-renters

Respond to a rent increase strategically — check its validity first, price your alternatives honestly, then negotiate with the leverage tenants forget they have (turnover costs the landlord more than a compromise). Use when asked my rent is going up what can I do, negotiate my rent increase, is this increase even legal, or should I stay or move. Produces the validity checklist, the stay-vs-move math, the negotiation letter with its trade menu, and the decision timeline against the notice period.

Get a landlord to actually fix things — the repair request that creates a record, the escalation ladder from reminder to habitability leverage, and the jurisdiction-flagged map of tenant remedies with their prerequisites. Use when asked my landlord won't fix anything, write a repair request, how long can they ignore a broken heater, or what are my options if repairs never happen. Produces the documented request, the severity triage, the escalation ladder with letters, and the remedies decode with the do-not-DIY warnings.

Get your security deposit back — the move-out documentation that wins disputes before they start, the itemized-deduction challenge, the demand-letter ladder, and the small-claims decision point. Use when asked how do I get my deposit back, my landlord is keeping my deposit, dispute these deposit deductions, or write a deposit demand letter. Produces the move-out evidence protocol, the deduction-by-deduction challenge with the wear-and-tear line drawn, the escalation ladder with letters, and the small-claims prep sheet.