ALLENDALE, Mich. — People living at the mobile home community Boulder Ridge of Allendale got a surprise in the mail this past week after they received a notice of a $100 rent increase for internet and cable services that some in the community say they won't use.
"Essentially, it just looked a lot more questions than it answered," said Boulder Ridge resident Maddy Hildenbrand.
With many residents having low or fixed incomes, some say the rate hike is a major concern.
"It made us anxious about how are we going to come up with this additional $100 a month," Hildenbrand said. "Because, for some it might not be that big of a deal. But for the ones that are very fixed income, this is a huge increase that we don't know how we're gonna make it work."
The lease agreement given to residents says that management will give at least 30 days' notice to rent changes, but does not list amenities like internet or cable under reasons why rent could go up during a lease.
Resident and single mother Holly Ridderman said she's worried.
"I don't use cable television," Ridderman said. "Why do I have to? Why am I being forced to sign up for something I don't use?"
In a statement to 13 On Your Side, the property's director of operations, Rebecca Ward, said they took a survey of residents' providers and costs when deciding to partner with Spectrum Internet.
"The majority of the residents currently use Spectrum Internet," the statement read. "Because our goal is to provide amenities to our residents which are cost effective and add value, we partnered with Spectrum Internet to provide premium services to our residents at a lower cost."
Ridderman said she never received the survey since moving in in 2019, and would continue to demand accountability.
"I feel like we're on the precipice of a very slippery slope here," Ridderman said. "And then, if we don't stand up and demand, you know, our rights be recognized, then we're just going to all get pushed into a whole lot more that we don't want or agree to."
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