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SPRINGFIELD — A housing court judge promises to make a decision about a mobile home park’s rent increase appeal by the month’s end. But first, the tenants’ lawyer will file new documents hoping to sway the judge’s decision.
Effective Feb. 1, the West Village Mobile Home Community received a nearly $300 rent increase — going from $207 to $503.06 a month — for the land on which their mobile homes sit. Most of the residents live on fixed incomes, are older or are disabled and say they can’t afford the 150% increase.
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Here’s the actual housing stats for Springfield, Massachusetts:
- Single family home price average is $240,800
- 3-bedrroom apartment rent is $1,540 per month.
Against that backdrop, the tenants of a mobile home park have filed suit stating that a rent of $503 per month is abhorrent, unjust, and every other adjective they can think of:
A housing court judge promises to make a decision about a mobile home park’s rent increase appeal by the month’s end. But first, the tenants’ lawyer will file new documents hoping to sway the judge’s decision. Effective Feb. 1, the West Village Mobile Home Community received a nearly $300 rent increase — going from $207 to $503.06 a month — for the land on which their mobile homes sit.
The foundation of their argument is that the rent is going up 150% to get to $503 per month. Apparently what the tenants are hoping is that by focusing on the 150% the judge will somehow be blinded to the fact that – at the new rent – the mobile home park is 66% less than an apartment, and around 90% less than a house.
They better hope that the judge is a total idiot.
I believe that the McDonald’s Value Menu Cheeseburger has gone from $1 to $3.15, which is a 215% increase. But that’s 50% of the cost of the cheeseburger at other restaurants. Get the picture?