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What’s Your Buildings Rental Cap?

By Matt Goyer September 4, 2008

Trace Lofts is looking at a rental cap and we’re curious to know what other condo buildings are capped at. If you know please leave a comment (yes we could spend hours holed up in the library looking through the public condo docs but that seems like a lot of work.)

As well I’d be curious to get a survey of move in/out fees.

Let me start with the Meritage, there’s an 80% cap being discussed and the move in/out fee is $100.

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40 responses to “What’s Your Buildings Rental Cap?”

Dan L says:

September 4, 2008 at 8:33 pm

At Meridian there’s a 15% rental cap. Move in fee is $300, no move out fee.
Dan L says:

September 4, 2008 at 12:33 pm

At Meridian there’s a 15% rental cap. Move in fee is $300, no move out fee.
Ryan Prins says:

September 4, 2008 at 8:53 pm

I believe that the rental cap for our building down in Eastlake is 6 units out of 36. There is a move in fee of I believe $150.
Ryan Prins says:

September 4, 2008 at 12:53 pm

I believe that the rental cap for our building down in Eastlake is 6 units out of 36. There is a move in fee of I believe $150.
CameronRex says:

September 4, 2008 at 9:23 pm

If you or your fellow residents still has a relationship with their mortgage broker ask him/her what the local standard is. The percentage of rental units can effect whether or not a lender will loan on future resales.

The thought is that if a large percentage of the unit are non-owner occupied it is less likely a property is being adequately maintained.
CameronRex says:

September 4, 2008 at 1:23 pm

If you or your fellow residents still has a relationship with their mortgage broker ask him/her what the local standard is. The percentage of rental units can effect whether or not a lender will loan on future resales.

The thought is that if a large percentage of the unit are non-owner occupied it is less likely a property is being adequately maintained.
IrisM says:

September 4, 2008 at 10:30 pm

At the Florentine there is a $400 move in/out fee plus a $500 refundable move in/out damage deposit. I just looked through the resale certificate and it doesn’t look like there is a cap.
IrisM says:

September 4, 2008 at 2:30 pm

At the Florentine there is a $400 move in/out fee plus a $500 refundable move in/out damage deposit. I just looked through the resale certificate and it doesn’t look like there is a cap.
Jason says:

September 4, 2008 at 10:34 pm

Word of mouth tells me most bldgs like to keep it around 15-20% at most.
Jason says:

September 4, 2008 at 2:34 pm

Word of mouth tells me most bldgs like to keep it around 15-20% at most.
EconE says:

September 4, 2008 at 6:13 pm

Not sure what the cap is here at 2200. I’m sure there are quite a few of us dirty, putrid, foul smelling renters however.

I heard the move-in fee was upped to $1000 after I moved in.
EconE says:

September 5, 2008 at 2:13 am

Not sure what the cap is here at 2200. I’m sure there are quite a few of us dirty, putrid, foul smelling renters however.

I heard the move-in fee was upped to $1000 after I moved in.
CG says:

September 7, 2008 at 5:38 am

At the Highlander on Capitol Hill, rentals are capped at 15% (9 units out of 63), but we rarely come close to hitting the maximum level. I think there’s both move-in/move-out fees of $100. Also, each rental is subject to a 10% surcharge on the monthly dues. To discourage spec flips, new homeowners cannot rent their units for the first two years.

One policy I think needs to be changed is the permanent status of some of the non-resident homeowners serving as landlords, who have been renting their units continuously for 10 or 20 years. I think a maximum rental duration of no more than 5 years out of every 10 years sounds about right. Maybe to encourage shorter rental periods, escalating annual fees could be charged to the non-resident homeowner, say $200 for rental year two rental, $300 for rental year three, etc.

As a former lifelong renter, I find it ironic that I now wish to restrict them as neighbors in my condo. But it seems clear to me that renters are far less invested in the upkeep of the building than are homeowners, and as a result, strictly inforcing limits on subletting condo units are warranted to engender a more cohensive residential environment.
CG says:

September 6, 2008 at 9:38 pm

At the Highlander on Capitol Hill, rentals are capped at 15% (9 units out of 63), but we rarely come close to hitting the maximum level. I think there’s both move-in/move-out fees of $100. Also, each rental is subject to a 10% surcharge on the monthly dues. To discourage spec flips, new homeowners cannot rent their units for the first two years.

One policy I think needs to be changed is the permanent status of some of the non-resident homeowners serving as landlords, who have been renting their units continuously for 10 or 20 years. I think a maximum rental duration of no more than 5 years out of every 10 years sounds about right. Maybe to encourage shorter rental periods, escalating annual fees could be charged to the non-resident homeowner, say $200 for rental year two rental, $300 for rental year three, etc.

As a former lifelong renter, I find it ironic that I now wish to restrict them as neighbors in my condo. But it seems clear to me that renters are far less invested in the upkeep of the building than are homeowners, and as a result, strictly inforcing limits on subletting condo units are warranted to engender a more cohensive residential environment.
EconE says:

September 7, 2008 at 6:45 am

NOT THIS RENTER CG!!!

For example. When I first moved in, I went to our lame-ass rec room to shoot a game of pool. The pool cues were not only missing tips, but EVERY one was warped. I never went back. A
few months later, the building manager asked if I would do him a favor and pick up some new tips for the cues. Being that I knew that they were all warped, I instead picked up for brand new cues.

I even picked up the tab. No big deal.

I used the workout room maybe 3x in the beginning but stopped as I didn’t want to be blamed for any damage…you know…being a renter and all.

I’ve never even seen the “Home Theater” room or used the “party room” although I did “see” it on my original “tour” through the building when I first arrived.

I don’t even wear shoes in my unit and make guests remove their shoes when visiting, including my elderly father.

On the flipside, my neighbor has chips in the paint all over her front door, leaves whole foods carts in the hallway and has left bags of trash in the little room that is between the elevator lobby area and the trash chute room.

A few days ago, there was even her whole foods cart with a bag of trash in the room.

How do I know it was her you might ask?

Well…the cart wheel imprints that led to her door were a pretty tell-tale sign. I use my little green whole foods bags myself and a handbasket in the store.

SO…what’s my point?

You’d be damn lucky to have ME as a renter in your building CG!

LOVE YA BABY!
EconE says:

September 6, 2008 at 10:45 pm

NOT THIS RENTER CG!!!

For example. When I first moved in, I went to our lame-ass rec room to shoot a game of pool. The pool cues were not only missing tips, but EVERY one was warped. I never went back. A
few months later, the building manager asked if I would do him a favor and pick up some new tips for the cues. Being that I knew that they were all warped, I instead picked up for brand new cues.

I even picked up the tab. No big deal.

I used the workout room maybe 3x in the beginning but stopped as I didn’t want to be blamed for any damage…you know…being a renter and all.

I’ve never even seen the “Home Theater” room or used the “party room” although I did “see” it on my original “tour” through the building when I first arrived.

I don’t even wear shoes in my unit and make guests remove their shoes when visiting, including my elderly father.

On the flipside, my neighbor has chips in the paint all over her front door, leaves whole foods carts in the hallway and has left bags of trash in the little room that is between the elevator lobby area and the trash chute room.

A few days ago, there was even her whole foods cart with a bag of trash in the room.

How do I know it was her you might ask?

Well…the cart wheel imprints that led to her door were a pretty tell-tale sign. I use my little green whole foods bags myself and a handbasket in the store.

SO…what’s my point?

You’d be damn lucky to have ME as a renter in your building CG!

LOVE YA BABY!
EconE says:

September 7, 2008 at 6:49 am

Oh…yeah….she’s a renter too.
EconE says:

September 6, 2008 at 10:49 pm

Oh…yeah….she’s a renter too.
Robyn says:

September 16, 2008 at 9:24 pm

OUr rental cap is 20% at Saybrook Condos in Kent. This now seems high and just after 1 year of being an association, it is already maxed out. The renters do n ot care as much and seem to be the bulk of the problem although I know there are good renters out there too. I think 15% would have been better for our community
Robyn says:

September 16, 2008 at 1:24 pm

OUr rental cap is 20% at Saybrook Condos in Kent. This now seems high and just after 1 year of being an association, it is already maxed out. The renters do n ot care as much and seem to be the bulk of the problem although I know there are good renters out there too. I think 15% would have been better for our community
justin says:

November 17, 2008 at 7:02 pm

My condo in Bellevue allows 20% to be rented out.

The issue we have is that all of these are very long term rentals, so we have a waiting list of 6 people that may never get to rent.
justin says:

November 17, 2008 at 12:02 pm

My condo in Bellevue allows 20% to be rented out.

The issue we have is that all of these are very long term rentals, so we have a waiting list of 6 people that may never get to rent.
RA says:

November 18, 2008 at 3:35 am

Ours is 20% but as Vice President of our community, I think that is too high. I THINK THE MAIN THING YOU FIGURE OUT IS…. WHAT IS CONSIDERED A RENTER???
In our pre-designed by-laws from our builder, its worded poorly so as long as a family member is the renter it dos not count. HOWEVER, even relatives dont care about the property as much as a homeowner so with this rule (which I hate) it still creates problems. I wish the rules to be changed to: “anyone other than the homeowner living in the unit is considered a rental.” That is something to consider. In my opinion 15-18% would be better.
What are the reasons for the move-in and move out fees? I dont get the reasonging behind it. Thanks,
RA
RA says:

November 17, 2008 at 8:35 pm

Ours is 20% but as Vice President of our community, I think that is too high. I THINK THE MAIN THING YOU FIGURE OUT IS…. WHAT IS CONSIDERED A RENTER???
In our pre-designed by-laws from our builder, its worded poorly so as long as a family member is the renter it dos not count. HOWEVER, even relatives dont care about the property as much as a homeowner so with this rule (which I hate) it still creates problems. I wish the rules to be changed to: “anyone other than the homeowner living in the unit is considered a rental.” That is something to consider. In my opinion 15-18% would be better.
What are the reasons for the move-in and move out fees? I dont get the reasonging behind it. Thanks,
RA
michael says:

January 15, 2009 at 7:18 pm

Question for Justin. You hit a very important point. What happens when one of the long-term rentals becomes vacant? Does #1 on the waiting list move into that spot, or can the current owner just keep renting and re-renting?
michael says:

January 15, 2009 at 12:18 pm

Question for Justin. You hit a very important point. What happens when one of the long-term rentals becomes vacant? Does #1 on the waiting list move into that spot, or can the current owner just keep renting and re-renting?
michael says:

January 15, 2009 at 7:20 pm

One more thing. A condo attorney once said that by re-renting over and over and not giving everyone a chance their unit (all are association members, after all), the association could potentially be hit with a discrimination lawsuit.
michael says:

January 15, 2009 at 12:20 pm

One more thing. A condo attorney once said that by re-renting over and over and not giving everyone a chance their unit (all are association members, after all), the association could potentially be hit with a discrimination lawsuit.
RA says:

January 16, 2009 at 10:19 pm

What we are trying at our property now is that each rental unit has 75 days to find a renter and turn in the required documents to get approved, otherwise, they go to the bottom of the list. What are the move-in and move-out fees for? I dont understand why the HOA would charge those. Can someone shed some light on that for me? Thanks.
RA says:

January 16, 2009 at 3:19 pm

What we are trying at our property now is that each rental unit has 75 days to find a renter and turn in the required documents to get approved, otherwise, they go to the bottom of the list. What are the move-in and move-out fees for? I dont understand why the HOA would charge those. Can someone shed some light on that for me? Thanks.
CG says:

January 17, 2009 at 12:01 am

RA: Move in/move out fees assessed just to renters (or, more specifically, to the non-resident homeowner who rents his or her unit) are intended (1) to discourage renting and (2) to cover the extra wear-and-tear on the common property resulting from the extra move ins. I think they are justified.
CG says:

January 16, 2009 at 5:01 pm

RA: Move in/move out fees assessed just to renters (or, more specifically, to the non-resident homeowner who rents his or her unit) are intended (1) to discourage renting and (2) to cover the extra wear-and-tear on the common property resulting from the extra move ins. I think they are justified.
Mark says:

March 17, 2009 at 2:20 pm

There are quite a few reasons for the rental caps and, as a law firm, we're doing more and more of them for HOAs. The comments above have touched on a number of strategies for handling the issues.

Talk it over with your HOA, be aware of what your HOA is aiming to do (lower wear and tear assessments? maintain member's ability to refi? maintain quality of life?) and get qualified legal advice.

~ Mark
D. Nagel says:

April 14, 2009 at 6:57 pm

start a rental cap IMMEDIATELY! also start a minimum six month rental policy so hotel like businesses (they like to call themselves VRUs -vacation rental units) don't take over your building and fill it full of strangers and people that don't care about the building. google condo-hotel-seattle or something similar and your eyes will bleed from the poor folks in town that are dealing with this rash of illegal behavior.
Sharon says:

April 20, 2009 at 10:57 am

My building in DC has a 20% rental cap and due to poor management and poor economy I suspect we are way over the limit. We have a six month minimum and no transient or hotel language is in the bylaws and we've discovered at least three companies operating corporate/hotel like rentals out of the building. We have a lease policy with one month condo fee as the fine for each month you are in violation. There is a wait list and a move in/out fee of $150 plus deposit.We did change property management companies and they are discovering the violations. What else can we do? Any suggestions on ways to get this under control?
justin says:

May 28, 2009 at 3:55 pm

Micheal 4 months later: In our condo the long term renters can be renters forever. But if they sell or stop renting for more then 3 months they go to the back of the waiting list.

We have renters that have been here for 15 years and most are great. If they are not we can kick them out, unlike bad owners…
Martin says:

October 18, 2009 at 12:14 pm

How do you/HOA find out who is a renter and who is a resident homeowner? I'm a homeowner on a new(ish) condo complex. Our CC&Rs/Bylaws do not include a rental cap, they only say the homeowner must notify the HOA board prior to renting their unit, but so far only two homeowners have (out of about 15-20 presumed rented units). Thanks
Martin says:

October 18, 2009 at 7:14 pm

How do you/HOA find out who is a renter and who is a resident homeowner? I'm a homeowner on a new(ish) condo complex. Our CC&Rs/Bylaws do not include a rental cap, they only say the homeowner must notify the HOA board prior to renting their unit, but so far only two homeowners have (out of about 15-20 presumed rented units). Thanks
Nd says:

March 14, 2015 at 11:35 am

Hi Matt,
I have a condo that I have been living in for over 15years. Recently the board announced there would be a rental cap. This rental cap will favor new owners/investors that are currently renting out their units grandfathering them in. I feel this is unfair longtime resident like myself, since I would like to rent my unit out this year and they will be at max.
Thanks
ND
mattgoyer says:

March 14, 2015 at 5:12 pm

Did the homeowners vote on this? They can’t impose a rental cap without a vote.

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