That changed abruptly, a year into her two-year lease. Suddenly, the landlord began texting her with strange concerns—warnings about her “excessive” water use or mentions of the apartment’s electricity consumption. He hinted that perhaps her rent needed to be “adjusted” to account for these costs.
Stacey was stunned. She’d always been careful with her utilities and knew her usage was reasonable. She defended herself firmly, refusing to accept any sort of rent increase. Their texts became tense, ending in a brief argument before her landlord reluctantly dropped the subject—for the time being.