How do I negotiate lower rent on an apartment?

Use StreetSmart to find building violations and landlord history, then leverage that data in rent negotiations. Buildings with open violations, pest issues, or maintenance problems give you leverage to negotiate 10-20% lower rent. Our free tool shows you exactly what issues exist so you can ask for fair pricing.

Can building violations help me lower my rent?

Yes! Open violations are powerful negotiation leverage. If a building has unresolved code violations, pest complaints, or safety issues, you can use this official data to negotiate lower rent or ask for repairs before signing. Many renters save $100-500/month using this approach.

Is StreetSmart free to use?

Yes, StreetSmart is 100% free with no credit card or sign-up required. You can instantly view building violations, landlord ratings, and use our rent negotiation tools for millions of apartments across 10 major US cities.

What cities does StreetSmart cover?

StreetSmart covers 10 major US cities: New York City (787K+ buildings), Los Angeles (2.2M+ buildings), Chicago (700K+ buildings), San Francisco (200K+ buildings), San Diego (330K+ buildings), Boston (183K+ buildings), Philadelphia (547K+ buildings), Seattle (172K+ buildings), Miami (500K+ buildings), and Austin (33K+ buildings).

How can I tell if my rent is too high?

Search your building on StreetSmart to see violation history, landlord ratings, and compare to similar buildings. If your building has significant issues but charges premium rent, you have grounds to negotiate. Our tools help you make data-backed requests for fair pricing.

Is Inner Richmond or Inner Sunset better to live in?

Inner Richmond and Inner Sunset are very similar in building quality, with average scores of 85 and 84 respectively. Your choice should depend on specific preferences like commute, lifestyle, and budget.

Which has more rent controlled apartments: Inner Richmond or Inner Sunset?

Inner Sunset has more likely rent controlled buildings (94%) compared to Inner Richmond (94%). SF rent control applies to buildings built before 1979.

StreetSmart/SF/Compare/Richmond vs Sunset

Inner Richmond vs Inner Sunset

Data-driven neighborhood comparison based on 4086 buildings

Richmond

avg score (2179 buildings)

Sunset

avg score (1907 buildings)

Side-by-Side Comparison

Metric

Richmond

Sunset

⭐Average Score

85✓

📊Median Score

86.267✓

84.766

🏠Rent Controlled (Pre-1979)

94%

🏛️Victorian/Edwardian (Pre-1945)

81%✓

62%

⚠️Avg Open Violations

0.1

🪳Avg Pest Violations

0.1

🔥Avg Heat Violations

0.2

🏢Total Buildings (2+ units)

2179✓

1907

🏆 Best in Richmond

See all Richmond buildings →

🏆 Best in Sunset

See all Sunset buildings →

📋 The Verdict

Inner Richmond and Inner Sunset are very evenly matched in terms of overall building quality. Both neighborhoods have average scores within a few points of each other. Your decision should come down to other factors like commute time, lifestyle preferences, and specific buildings you find.

Choose Richmond if you want: