I’ve Rented in New York for Almost a Decade — Here Are the Landlord Red Flags I Wish I Knew Sooner

Written by

Andy Hirschfeld
Andy Hirschfeld
Andy Hirschfeld is a reporter in New York. In addition to Apartment Therapy, his work has appeared in publications including Slate, The Daily Beast, Eater, Al Jazeera English, and CNBC.com among other notable outlets.
published Jun 28, 2024
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Moving in to new home together
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Summer is a hyper-competitive season to move — especially if you live in New York City like I do. You’re competing with recent college grads trying to make it in the big city, people who are starting new jobs after the typical spring hiring season, and, of course, people who get caught in the never-ending cycle of early summer lease expirations.

I’m nine years into this terrible feedback loop, and what I’ve learned is that while the market is hot with great new apartments, it also means you may have to move too fast to get acquainted with or review your possible new landlord before you sign a lease.

I’ve had my fair share of crappy landlords. During my time as a renter, I had one landlord who tried to raise my rent 24% year to year, another who failed to take care of major damage, and another who sold my building without alerting tenants, leaving us to pay the wrong landlord for six months before we found out what happened.

At the same time, I’ve had landlords who were responsive to problems and even accepted my request to lower my unit’s price during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be a total guessing game — there are so many tactics you can use to research your potential future landlord so you know what you’re getting into after move-in day.

After almost a decade of living in New York City, and dealing with pleasant and nightmare landlords alike, I’ve learned some tricks on how to determine if your future landlord is a good fit (or if they, or the unit, are just a walking red flag). While these tricks are not totally foolproof, they have done me a lot of good — and I wish I knew them sooner.

Your Landlord’s Rent Price Increase History

Rent prices will go up year to year to match inflation, but a big jump in rent can be a giant red flag. Did your potential new landlord try and price out the previous tenant? In a year’s time, you could be on the receiving end of the same tactic. But how would you know?

Thankfully there are a slew of tools available on top platforms that help you find an apartment, like Zillow, and the New York local favorite, Street Easy.

How Often Your Potential Unit Is on the Market

It’s also worth checking out how often a place goes on the market. If a tenant stays in the same place for six years, that’s a pretty good sign. 

On the other hand, if a unit seems to be on the market every year, that could be a sign that you should look into your landlord more closely. 

I once lived in a Brooklyn apartment for $3,800. The following year, my landlord wanted to raise rent to $5,000. I said no and moved out. Thanks to the “price history” tab on StreetEasy, I know that the following year after that, the landlord tried to list the apartment for $5,850. 

Not every landlord is equal in this respect. Even if it’s not your thing, watch the markets and consider what kind of landlord you’re working with. 

What “Type” of Landlord You Might Have

There are “mom and pop” landlords (who might even live in your building with you) and then there are big, institutional management companies that own hundreds, if not thousands, of apartment buildings. There are downsides/upsides to both — mom and pop landlords are more subject to having to bear the cost of inflation, for example, over massive institutional landlords. 

Tools like the website Justfix are great to help you figure out what kind of landlord you have. It shows you all the buildings your landlord might also own, which can help you in your next phase of research.

The Number of Landlord Complaints

Justfix can also help you find out your landlord’s record. 

Look at all the 311 complaints lodged against your building’s landlord. In New York City, it’s very common to live in a building owned by a large management company that also owns hundreds of other buildings across the city. Is there a theme in the complaints about them? Are they really bad at fixing mold problems? Water damage? Basic plumbing issues? Vermin? Those are all pretty massive red flags. 

This seems to be a bigger problem with institutional landlords who might not even keep a super on the property. That means they’ll often hire a third party to manage day-to-day operations and respond to crises. The maintenance guy in my current building, for example, is the same person that the management company of my old building used. 

Wager those against platforms like Open Igloo, Rate My Landlord, and even Yelp. A lot of bad reviews across multiple platforms is a sign something must be wrong. One of my previous landlords (the same one who wanted to raise my rent from $3800 to $5000) was also called out for failing to fix problems in apartments, being nearly impossible to reach, and almost always keeping security deposits. 

Then I was on the receiving end of that. My then-roommate and I were only able to get our deposit back by going to the management company’s office and refusing to leave until they returned our deposit. 

What the Apartment Is Like in Different Weather

The best advice I’ve received on this one managed to pay off. If the potential landlord passes the price and complaint test, try going to visit a prospective apartment in bad weather. It’s not fun, and you may end up having to sacrifice a pair of shoes to urban Poseidon, but it can be worth it in the long run. 

You don’t want to move into a bottom-floor apartment only to find out that it floods regularly during heavy rainstorms, or that you have a reliably leaky ceiling. Chances are this will be a chronic problem, and one your landlord might be pretty comfortable ignoring. I once toured an awesome apartment that had a leaky ceiling. I passed on this otherwise stunning apartment. I probably wouldn’t have even noticed if I toured during a nice day.