If you are interested in increasing the rental cost of your property but aren’t sure by how much, there are a few things you should consider.
Firstly, check the requirements and limitations of your state before making any type of increase [2].
Additionally, some specific municipalities have enacted rent control, limiting the amount and frequency of rent increases. It is important to ensure that these restrictions do not apply before issuing a rent increase notice.
For example, you won’t be able to raise the rent only because the tenant asks you to make repairs to the property. This could be considered retaliatory and is illegal in most states. (Texas Property Code, Section 92.331)
If a rent increase comes shortly after the tenant requests repairs or makes a good-faith complaint against the landlord, that rent increase may also be deemed retaliatory.
Once you’ve gone over limitations and requirements, review the following factors to figure out how much you should raise the rent:
- Rental property market where you live
- How often rent is raised
- Consumer Price Index
- Calculated rate of inflation
- How your tenant has behaved while living in your property
- Comparable properties' rent increases in the same period
It’s normal for landlords to increase their rent by 1% to 2% to adjust for the inflation rate. The U.S. annual inflation rate is about 2.9% as of February 2025. However, it’s also normal to increase the price of rent by up to 5% depending on the other factors.