Annual rent increase dilemma?

Boy, there’s a lot of controversy swirling around this topic. Increase rent by a little bit each year or by a painful amount every five years or so? Is it gonna be a $10 increase per month or $50 increase per month. Are these long term tenants that you want to keep or recent arrivals that are good tenants but could be gone at lease’s end? Some landlords increase their rent by 10% with each turnover and 3-5% with each renewal. A lot depends upon the reputation of the landlord and the quality property & maintenance – if you have a reasonable and responsive landlord who diligently maintains the property, tenants are inclined to renew regardless of the increase (remember ‘reasonable’ is the operative word here as well). We all know that maintenance costs increase and we presume that ‘everyone’ gets a ‘raise’ once a year…just remember that your ‘good’ tenants are working hard for their money too – and whopping increase in rent, that may be as little as 3%, could be unaffordable for them. I’m definitely in this business for the profit, but sometimes you have to weigh the pros with the cons…and there are times when 3% provides your tenant with a lot more than the same 3% will provide you as the landlord.