BANGOR, Maine — Bangor city councilors and members of the public met on Wednesday to come to an agreement over proposed tenants' rights.
In the new ordinance, the city plans to lengthen the notice a landlord will need to give their renters if they plan to increase the cost of rent—a wider safety net from the state's 45-day span up to 60.
"The council has come up with a reasonable set of solutions," council member Rick Fournier said. "There's such a shortage in housing right now, we want to be able to give tenants the opportunity to at least go out and look and see if they can find anything if their rent is going up."
Also proposed is a stop to application fees, and a $75 cap on screening fees; only when a tenant is guaranteed housing.
The proposal comes as a potential ease on tenants' wallets during the search for an apartment, something renter Randy Newcombe is far too familiar with. He said the rules are a great start but would love to see more changes in the future for verifying sellers of property listings.
"Solicitations for fees and applications, some of it upfront before you even see the place," Newcombe said. "I think it's a good start, I think there still is some work to be done."
Louie Morrison is a landlord for a handful of properties in the Bangor area and said although he doesn't charge an application fee, he understands why larger companies may feel the need to, especially with the demand in the area.
"We have all of this stuff that happens in the middle, but the biggest problem especially in our area is still housing," Morrison said.
The sentiment is the same for Bangor Housing Authority Executive Director Mike Myatt, who deals with a long list of applicants and competitive price tags as a result.
"Rent in Bangor has always been pretty tight, but I think there's just more renters looking and there just doesn't seem to be enough supply," Myatt said.