According to a new research of the New York City comptroller’s office, it is concluded that the number of rent-stabilized units that are vacant and not available for rent, fell dramatically by 39%, in the last two years.
The report estimates that less than 2,000 rent-controlled and stabilized unitswhich rent for $1,500 or less, are empty due to the owners’ alleged inability to make repairs.
These findings arise when homeowner organizations argue that the current controls, for this type of housing units, have meant ruin for many investors and it is taking apartments off the market, because it is impossible for the ‘landlords’ to repair them.
As the State Assembly moves toward a deal to help solve New York’s housing crisis, landlord-backed groups have argued that the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act (HSTPA), passed in 2019, severely limited the amount rents can be raised on vacant unitswhich is why it is unprofitable, renovate rent-stabilized units for re-rental purposes.
To better understand the problem, the Comptroller’s office analyzed data from the 2023 Housing and Vacancy Survey (HVS) recently published to evaluate changes in the conditions and supply of rental housing, before and after the passage of the HSTPA.
“Our report found no evidence that the HSTPA led to an increase in vacant or distressed units in the city’s rent-stabilized housing stock. There is simply no evidence for the owners’ claims that the HSTPAthe liberation of prices for vacant units should be reversed, or restored,” said the Comptroller Brad Lander.
Let them return to the market
For the small number of rent-stabilized units that have been kept off the market, a modest increase in the Individual Apartment Improvement (IAI) limit, along with strategies targeting buildings facing major distress, will allow units to come back online, while ensuring tenants remain protected, Lander argues.
To ensure that rent-stabilized buildings can receive the repairs they need while ensuring tenants remain protected, the Comptroller’s Office recommends that the state Legislature should increase the cap on IAI increases from $15,000 to $25,000 and tie it to inflation in the future.
This municipal office also urges that the existing program of New York State Housing and Community Renewal (HCR) to address real cases of landlord difficulties, including capital subsidies, rental vouchers and preservation loans where applicable.
The controller of NYC demands the mayor and City Council that include funds in the fiscal year 2025 budget, for the “Neighborhood Pillars” program, that make way for the transition from distressed private housing to community ownership. This would allow make necessary repairs to buildings and preserve long-term affordability.
The bell “Homes now, homes for generations”launched this Monday by a coalition of New York City officials and advocates, calls for the addition of $250 million for this program, over the next four years.
For Lorena Prado, a Community Voices Heard activista coalition that fights against the racist scheme of housing policies in the Big Apple, interprets that it is evident that recent history has made it clear that large real estate corporations have set out to evict the working class, to offer more profitable luxury units for them.
“It is obvious that no one makes an investment to lose or not have sufficient profits. But we are at a key moment, where elected leaders must seek a point of balance. Otherwise, working class and communities of color will continue to be displaced from all neighborhoods. It happens in Harlem. It happens in the Bronx and now in Queens. There is no place you can live for less than $3,000.Lorena brings.
What do the landlords say?
A survey of multifamily building owners in New York Cityshows that those with rent-stabilized apartment buildings have difficulty making necessary repairs to their units, which generates higher unemployment rates.
The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) and the Rent Stabilization Association of New York released a study this week, which focused on the impact of the 2019 rent control law and surveyed more than 700 residential property owners and managers representing properties spanning 240,000 units.
REBNY argues that the 2019 rental law, known as the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act, “has ruined the owners’ ability to cover maintenance costs”
According to the report published in local media, building owners are struggling to put rent-stabilized units back on the market once they become vacant, especially after long leases. And particularly, among small owners with buildings with few units.
The ‘landlords’ cited new boilers, roof repairs, leaks, walls and plumbing such as higher costs.
There are fewer unemployed:
- 4.57% in 2021 to 0.98% in 2023 the rate of vacant rent-stabilized units decreased.
- 2021 y 2023 were the years in which owners recorded fewer units that are vacant but not available to rent for some reason, for example, held for occasional use, undergoing renovation, or legal dispute.
- 11,500 units in 2021 to just over 3,000 units in 2023 decreased rent stabilized units in NYC that are vacant but not available for rent for any reason.
- 2,000 unoccupied apartments that would rent for less than $1,500 and have been priced out of the market due to the owners’ inability to make repairs.
2024-03-15 10:00:00
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