I asked for and got a rent reduction in December of 2003. I had looked at an apartment that had one more bathroom and one more parking space than the apartment I currently live in but was about $200/month less in rent. I also was a bit concerned about affording the rent I was paying at that time on my current apartment after my then-husband had moved out.

So, armed with the information on the other apartment in my neighborhood and having noticed that there were a lot of apartments for rent in general in the neighborhood, I asked the building managers (the landlord and landlady's daughter and son-in-law who live in the building) if their parents would consider reducing the rent. They reduced the rent on my current apartment by about $158/month starting in January of 2004.

Now, I bring this up because I told this story to another renter about my age (mid-30s), and she said she would never even have thought to ask for a reduction in rent. So that got me wondering if such negotiating is really all that rare.

Has anyone else ever requested a rent reduction? If so, did you get it?

- KG, wondering if anyone still reads this board