While rental costs may be increasing substantially across the United States, renters find the accommodation they get rarely lives up to its high price tag.
For example, one tenant of a “luxury” apartment building claimed that the building’s yard was frequently covered in garbage and that the property pool had feces. Another “luxury” renter alleged that, after filling her sink with water, it collapsed through her kitchen counter. A further renter noted that her daughter’s new “expensive” apartment featured a mirror that was hung up with painter’s tape.
TikTok user Megan Bowen (@meganbowen__) is one of those tenants currently dealing with high rental prices. While she notes in a video that she signed her lease at $2,300, her landlord allegedly recently opted to increase her rent to $4,000. In exchange for this rent raise, Bowen says she received an unwelcome surprise: a flooded basement.
@meganbowen__ I LITERALLY CANNOT MAKE THIS SH!T UP !!!!!! HAHAHAHAHHA
♬ Spongebob Tomfoolery – Dante9k Remix – David Snell
In the video, which currently has over 172,000 views as of Sunday, Bowen takes the audience downstairs to her basement.
“Just came to do some laundry this morning,” she says, descending the stairs. After a second, she jumps down onto the floor, causing a splash. “What’s this? A flood!”
New York, where Bowen is located, is currently dealing with flash floods that may be the cause of the water. Still, users were quick to laugh at the dark humor of the situation.
“4000 a month AND it comes with an indoor pool. You scored!” a commenter joked.
“Is that including a lifeguard??” another asked.
Bowen isn’t the first to virally complain about rental price increases. One user alleged that their landlord raised their rent from $2,100 to $4,175. Another claimed their landlord raised their rent by $400 simply out of spite. A further TikToker sparked discussion after realizing that their rent went up by $700 every two weeks.
In Bowen’s comments section, users questioned how a landlord could justify their high price tag given issues like these.
“$4k and you don’t even have an in unit laundry room?!” a commenter exclaimed.
“They’ll probably charge you another $4k special charge for your repairs,” a second added.
“I can’t believe landlord’s get away with this though?” a third said.
“My life is a sitcom rn,” Bowen wrote in the comments. “This episode is reallyyyyyyy funny.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Bowen via email.