3. Figure out if the rent increase is worth it

Before you make either kind of agreement, it is helpful to think of what the cost of the rent increase will be over time. Figure out how much you will have paid for the item, improvement, or service after a year or more, and decide if it is worth that much to you.

Your rent does not go back down when the improvement has been paid for, unless the agreement says that it will. So you could be paying the increase for as long as you live there.

These increases can be added to other kinds of increases, such as a guideline increase or an above-guideline increase allowed by the Board.

Make sure what your landlord is offering is not something that is already included in your rental agreement or that your landlord is legally responsible for, such as normal maintenance and repairs.