Let’s just say it the way it is: rent feels high. Like, unreasonably high. Like “how is my shoebox more expensive than my friend’s mortgage?” high.
But here’s the uncomfortable question nobody really wants to ask: is rent actually out of control… or is it just being poorly managed?
Not every landlord wants to hear it. But if you’re a renter scratching your head or a property owner quietly sweating, it’s worth exploring. According to Priority One Real Estate, the rent crisis isn’t about greedy markets or runaway inflation; it’s about missteps, missed opportunities, and the messy way we manage property in general.
First: Yes, Rents Have Gone Up (A Lot)
To get the obvious out of the way, rents have climbed faster than your patience. In 2023, the median asking rent in the U.S. hovered around $1,964, according to Redfin. That’s a 20% jump compared to pre-pandemic times.
And sure, you could blame inflation. Or housing shortages. Or that one neighbor who bought three investment condos and now plays Airbnb host like it’s a side hustle from the underworld.
But the bigger truth? The system’s kind of broken, and not just because of demand.
High Rent Isn’t Always About High Demand
Here’s a hot take: some rentals are expensive not because they’re in high demand, but because they’re badly run.
Think of it like this. You’ve probably walked into a rental that costs $2,000 a month and wondered what exactly that money is doing. The windows stick, the paint’s peeling, and the landlord ghosted after your first maintenance request. In what world is that worth two grand?
Here’s the thing no one tells you: bad management costs money.
Poorly maintained properties drive up costs in subtle ways. Leaky pipes become water damage. Vacancies stretch longer when listings are vague or photos look like they were taken with a potato. Renters leave, word spreads, and boom, profit takes a nosedive. So what do some landlords do? Raise the rent to make up for the chaos.
See the vicious cycle?
The Hidden Cost of Chaos
Let’s take a quick peek at the math.
According to the National Apartment Association, the average cost of tenant turnover is about $4,000 per unit. That includes cleaning, repairs, marketing, lost rent, and the general stress of trying to explain why the last tenant left mid-lease and took your fridge magnets.
Now imagine that happening three or four times a year. That’s not sustainable. But it’s also not inevitable.
In a lot of cases, it’s a direct result of how the property is managed, or mismanaged.
Enter: Property Managers (Yes, the Good Ones Exist)
Not to oversell it, but professional property managers can make or break the rental experience. For both sides.
They’re the ones who actually respond to maintenance requests before you’ve sent a fourth follow-up. The ones who know how to price a rental based on market data instead of vibes and wishful thinking. The ones who make the process feel, dare I say, livable.
When rent pricing is based on real-time data, local demand, and actual unit quality, not panic or guesswork, everything changes.
And from the landlord’s side? A good property manager keeps units filled longer, reduces turnover, and maintains better relationships with tenants. Which ultimately means rent prices don’t have to spiral just to keep the lights on.
But What About Rent Control?
Now, someone reading this is already muttering: “What we need is rent control.”
Sure, that’s one conversation. And in some cities, it’s helped stop the bleeding. But rent control is a band-aid, not a cure. It caps prices, but it doesn’t solve the deeper dysfunction of how rentals are operated.
It doesn’t fix the property manager who never shows up. Or the owner who raises rent 10% every year just because they can.
In fact, in poorly managed buildings, rent control can actually mask deeper problems, like underinvestment, neglect, or, bluntly, no one giving a damn about tenants until the Yelp reviews get savage.
So… Are Rent Prices Really Out of Control?
The annoying answer: yes and no.
Yes, rents have increased beyond what many people can reasonably afford. But also, no, they’re not all being priced that way because of unchangeable market forces.
A lot of it comes down to management. To systems. To care. And yeah, to property owners making informed (or not-so-informed) decisions.
Maybe the real issue isn’t that rent is too high. Maybe it’s that it’s being decided in a vacuum, with too little oversight, too few standards, and not nearly enough accountability.
A Quick Note for Property Owners
If you’re a landlord quietly sweating through this article, first, good on you for reading this far. Second, here’s the takeaway:
You don’t have to guess your way through pricing, maintenance, or tenant turnover. You don’t have to become an accidental villain in someone’s housing horror story. You can hire a property manager who knows what they’re doing, and save everyone (including yourself) a lot of grief.
Because when rentals are well-managed, rent doesn’t have to feel like a racket.
The Bottom Line?
Rent might be high. But “high” is a relative term. What really matters is whether it’s justified.
If the property is clean, safe, well-maintained, and managed by people who know what they’re doing? That’s rent with a reason.
But if it’s a chaotic mess wrapped in peeling drywall with a silent landlord behind the curtain, well, then maybe the rent is too damn high. Or at least, too poorly managed to make sense.
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