Residents Of Richmond Apartments Facing Steep Rent Increases

Residents of the Richmond subdivision apartments off Old South Road were shocked and dismayed last week to receive lease renewal letters that included rent increases of 20 to 30 percent.

The Richmond Company, which purchased the former Glowacki junkyard back in 2013 for more than $30 million and has spent the last decade redeveloping the site, is now the largest landlord on Nantucket. Between its Meadows I and Meadows II complexes, it rents 253 apartment units.

While the company has stated that it "is committed to the construction of economically accessible & reasonably priced housing opportunities for year-round Nantucket residents," some of its renters are crying foul over the steep increases they discovered in Richmond's lease renewal letters delivered last week.

"Nantucket already faces a housing affordability crisis, and this sudden increase only exacerbates the issue," said a Richmond resident who asked to remain anonymous out of fear of losing his housing. "I believe this is a matter that deserves attention, as it puts undue pressure on residents who are already dealing with the challenges of high living expenses and limited housing options."

A resident of the Meadows II apartments, the man's $2,575 monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment will jump to $3,075 under Richmond's proposed increase, a 19.4 percent increase. The rate does not include utilities like water or electricity. 

The Richmond Company (formerly Richmond Great Point Development), is nearing the full buildout of its 225-apartment, 94-house subdivision. Ten years ago, voters approved two zoning changes to allow increased zoning density at the Richmond development in exchange for affordable housing guarantees. The apartments that have been constructed are a mix of market rate rentals and affordably restricted units reserved for households earning between 50 percent and 120 percent of Nantucket's area median income.

"For years, we have worked to keep rents as stable as possible, even as housing costs nationwide rose due to inflation, rising interest rates, supply chain challenges, and increased operating costs," said Phil Pastan, president of the Richmond Company, in a prepared statement provided in response to the Current's inquiry about rent increases. "When our first rental buildings opened in 2017, rents were initially established in the context of an unfinished community and increased rental rates for newly constructed phases were implemented gradually. However, cost pressures have made it increasingly difficult to sustain the below-market rates offered in the past. While these adjustments may feel abrupt, we have been working to delay these increases for as long as possible. We are aware that these long-delayed adjustments impact a set of legacy market-rate units, however implementation of these changes will result in all residents incurring a standard set of rental costs over time."

Pastan and the Richmond Company declined to say how many rental units are facing double-digit percentage rent increases this year, and did not respond to a follow-up inquiry.

But current and former residents say the high rents - and now large increases - are causing economic hardships because there are no other options or forcing them to move off-island.

"I had to leave the island just because of that," said Hengerls Padilla, who lived in the Richmond Company apartments for two years before deciding to leave Nantucket. "I know that a lot of people who live there are struggling because of the way they increase everything. I lived there for two years, and it was hard for me. But they have a monopoly, so they feel that they have the power to do what they want...They are abusing people."

Another Richmond apartment resident who rents a two-bedroom unit showed the Current his renewal letter that arrived last week informing him that his rent was increasing from $3,347 per month to $4,370 (not including utilities), a 30.5 percent increase.

"They are scamming us," the man said.