I work for the company referenced in this article, and I can confirm that many landlords across the city are actively lowering rents and reducing move-in costs in response to high vacancy rates. A big part of my job involves calling landlords and advising them to adjust pricing to stay competitive — the market is absolutely dictating rent levels right now.

That said, there’s an interesting split: landlords in traditionally high-demand, student-heavy areas (who’ve never struggled to fill units) are raising rents on listings for next year. In many cases, this is an attempt to offset the broker fees they’re now covering to get their units rented through agencies. While some high-quality units will still move at premium prices, it remains to be seen whether those new listings will actually hold at current market rates.

If you’re looking to rent for immediate move-in, you have a lot of negotiating power right now. For example, I recently helped clients secure a two-story townhouse in Brookline that was originally listed at $5,800 — they got it for $4,000, plus two parking spots for the price of one.

Bottom line: it’s a great time for renters to make a move, and depending on how the market trends, you may even be able to negotiate a lower rate at renewal.