‘What Renters Want’ with Jessica Fiur: The Super Bowl and Preventing Subleases

This year, the Super Bowl will be held in East Rutherford, N.J. I live in New Jersey, not too far from there. So this news has produced a wave of emotions in me: apathy, indifference, boredom, hunger and just a smidgen of all-consuming rage—all the local restaurants are going to be packed near game day, and that traffic that Jersey is famous for (along with Bon Jovi, The Boss and smelling like a garbage barge) will be even worse. And apparently I’m not the only one who has a problem with the Bruno Mars concert with a side of football. My apartment community just sent an email memo to all residents saying that all subleases need to be approved, and that they will not be approving any near or around the Super Bowl.

The reason the management company listed was to keep the community quiet and peaceful for all of the residents. After all, new people coming in and out of the building at all hours could be loud and disrespectful to their neighbors. Especially people who are there for a short time—they’re likely to treat the place as a hotel instead of a place where people live. Plus, after a day of tailgating, they might end up damaging the units or the common areas.

“Are you ready for some football?” “Meh, I guess.”

Even if your community isn’t lucky(?) enough to be located near the Super Bowl, there might be times when there are an influx of tourists in the area—maybe there’s a marathon nearby, or a festival, or your community is near a college so you have tons of parents coming up—and enterprising residents might want to rent out their rooms. How do you control this?

If you are anti-subleasing, the first step is to have this written out in the original lease. That way if you discover residents are turning your beautiful community into the Bates Motel (might not happen, but then again, we all do go a little mad sometimes…), you’ll be able to step in according to the lease terms. Additionally, an email, like the one my community sent around, might be a good deterrent as well. This way residents know that they would be violating policy if they did.

Now, just because you might not necessarily want your residents subleasing their apartments for a huge event, doesn’t mean that you might not be able to rent out your apartments for a huge event. If you have vacant apartments, this could be an excellent way to earn some ancillary income. However, the same problems might arise whether you’re renting out the units or your residents—a lack of respect for the units and for neighbors. But at least this it would take out the middleman, and the temporary resident would have to check in with you.

What is your policy on subleasing? Do you allow your residents to sublease their apartments, particularly for a short amount of time for something like the Super Bowl? Would you consider doing this as a way to make some ancillary income? Who are you hoping makes it to the Super Bowl this year? (My husband tells me that by signing our marriage license I am henceforth required to root for the Jets. And that’s why you always read the fine print on contracts, folks!)

By Jessica Fiur, Senior Editor

Photo credit: photastic