Board asks 233 Auburn applicant for more documents; finds application incomplete

The Portland Rent Board on Feb. 26 held a completeness review for a renovation/reset application filed for 233 Auburn Street (applicant Faye Pertwee) and voted to find the application incomplete, asking the applicant to provide additional documentation.

Why it matters: The applicant seeks a reset of the base rent for a renovated unit and presented photographs, invoices and a budget. Board members welcomed the photos and asked for clearer receipts and rent‑ledger evidence so members can verify historical rents, banked rent and the proper amortization or capitalization of renovation costs.

Applicant Faye Pertwee said she has owned the property since 2002, described long‑standing tenancies and summarized the work done to one two‑bedroom unit. Pertwee said she hoped to set a new rent “for about, 1,900 a month” after a comprehensive renovation that included new electrical, plumbing, floors, kitchen and bath. Board members asked for confirmation of historic scheduled rent (the board requires a scheduled‑rent figure for the base year even if a unit became vacant) and requested a recalculation showing 2019 scheduled rent as if a long‑term tenant had remained occupied for the full year.

Board members requested copies of vendor invoices (some large carpentry invoices appeared missing from the packet), canceled checks or check‑register pages, and a clearer itemization of which expenses should be amortized as capital improvements versus treated as maintenance. Member Matt Walker suggested submitting a printout of property tax and registration receipts for verification; Matt Lacks asked for unit‑level rent ledgers or lease front pages so the board can determine whether banked rent exists and how much is available.

Outcome: The board moved and voted to find the 233 Auburn application incomplete. The chair said staff would email a checklist and that the applicant should provide the missing invoices (including a noted $22,000 carpentry invoice), rent ledgers or equivalent documentation of rents collected, and recalculated income figures that include an assumed full year for the base year tenant where applicable.

Ending: The board will reconsider the application once the applicant submits the requested records. The chair confirmed the board will provide written notes and the meeting recording is posted to the city site for reference.