How I Rent: How a Porch Conversation Led to the Perfect Apartment

KP was renting a just-okay apartment in a neighborhood they loved when their landlord announced a shocking $600 rent increase. The landlord was unwilling to negotiate, and KP scrambled to figure out what to do next. Fortunately, they already had something many renters lack: a close-knit community of neighbors.

We sat down to chat with KP about neighborhood connections, hosting, and how a few porch conversations can sometimes change everything.

Renter: KP

Location: Richmond, VA

Occupation: Content Strategist and Creator

Who you share your apartment with: My wife and our Italian Greyhound

What’s the most YOU thing in your apartment?: Our porch and kitchen — we’re always hosting, cooking, and bringing people together.

What drew you to your neighborhood?

I grew up in the South, where people sit on their porches and talk to each other, so I knew that I really enjoyed knowing my neighbors. In Boston, where I used to live, you could get to know your neighbors, but it took forever. To become a regular at a place, you had to show up consistently for six months before they started taking you seriously. Here, you can meet someone twice and be like, "Hey, how are you?" Which is incredible.

We knew we wanted to be in a super walkable area, so we live close to a street full of small businesses. We're also close to the big museums and a bunch of really yummy restaurants.

It sounds like you’re pretty connected with your neighbors. Did that help when your rent situation changed?

Absolutely. We had been living on our street for a couple of years. It's a block with a bunch of row houses, and everything's walkable. We know all our neighbors. We have porches. Like, it's incredible.

Then our landlord told us they were raising the rent by $600 a month. That's over a third of what we were paying, which is cuckoo bananas anywhere, but especially in Richmond, Virginia.

I reached out to the landlord to try to reason with them – "Hey, we're really good tenants. Do you have to do this?" And they pretty much said, "Yeah, we do."

I started chatting with our neighbor who owned the house next door. They'd been Airbnbing the upstairs unit, and they told me they were planning to rent the downstairs long-term. I was like, "That's so funny, because we are looking for long-term housing."

That’s so lucky! What sealed the deal?

They had just remodeled the kitchen, which is why I have a really nice kitchen now. It's the nicest kitchen I've ever had. We also have a backyard, and my wife loves to grill and smoke various delicious things. And then having a front porch is amazing. We love to host and have people over. It's great having space for that. Also, they wrote into our lease that our rent can only go up by 2% every year. And we already really liked them as neighbors.

It sounds like you've made great use of the place.

Yes, 100%. My wife has only gotten more excited about cooking now that we have the space to do it. Like, for her 30th birthday, she fried, smoked, and grilled 30 chickens and prepared 10 sauces. And I was like, "This is what you want to do for your birthday? You want to work in the kitchen all day?" Everybody had a great time, and we had probably 30 people in the backyard. We also love to just casually invite someone over to drink a beer on the porch.

What does a perfect day in your neighborhood look like?

I'd start by taking our dog for a walk. Having a dog in a walkable neighborhood is an incredible way to meet people. We've made so many friends just stopping to chit-chat while walking our dog. Then, I'd probably walk over to one of the coffee shops nearby. Then we'd hop in the car to hang out at the James River. Then, come back home to sit on the porch with friends.

Anything you'd change about your place?

If I could change anything, it would be the bathroom. It's old, and I wish it had been remodeled, but beggars can't be choosers.