Current rent
per month
New rent
per month
| Period | Before | After | Extra cost |
|---|
How does this increase compare?
Understanding rent increases
A 3% rent increase is often described as a cost-of-living adjustment — designed to keep pace with inflation. At current inflation levels of 2–4%, a 3% increase means your real housing cost stays roughly flat. Anything above inflation is a real increase in your housing costs.
The annual impact is always larger than the monthly figure suggests. A $75/month increase sounds manageable — but it's $900 per year that you're no longer saving or spending elsewhere. Over 5 years, that's $4,500 more paid in rent, before any further increases.
If you're negotiating with a landlord, focus on the annual number, not the monthly figure. Proposing to sign a longer lease (18–24 months instead of 12) in exchange for a smaller increase is often effective — landlords value tenant stability over maximising short-term rent.