Democratic Assembly Passes Pro-Tenant Legislation
In a potentially huge set-back to New York City landlords, the New York State Assembly passed a new package of legislation yesterday that strengthen’s rent regulation across the state and gives more authority to the pro-tenant New York City Council. According to The Times, the new rules would “essentially return to regulation tens of thousands…
In a potentially huge set-back to New York City landlords, the New York State Assembly passed a new package of legislation yesterday that strengthen’s rent regulation across the state and gives more authority to the pro-tenant New York City Council. According to The Times, the new rules would “essentially return to regulation tens of thousands of units that were converted to market rate in recent years” and reduce the amount a landlord is allowed to increase the rent upon a vacancy from 20 percent to 10 percent. It’s a matter of fairness, said Jonathan L. Bing, an assemblyman who represents the Upper East Side. We’re trying to give people a way to live out their lives in the neighborhoods they’ve been calling home for decades. On the other side of the coin: This is going to be very devastating, said Joseph Strasburg, president of the Rent Stabilization Association, a group that represents landlords and real estate agents in the city. New York City is the last big city in the country that has any strong form of rent regulation. And at a time when we have an economic recession, when rents are actually going down, this will put another nail in the coffin. In our opinion, the government should spend more time and resources making sure landlords adequately maintain their buildings and abide by the legal terms of their leases with tenants and less time trying to fight the laws of supply and demand. After all, rents are already coming down anyway.
Assembly Passes Rent-Regulation Revisions [NY Times]
Photo by Bobble
Christopher,
I’m also sick of this demonetization of landlords.In this time of economic trouble it’s important to have strong currency, backed by something of value. It’s comforting to know that each of my dollars is worth X number of landlords 🙂
I also agree that it’s unfair to demonize them (even though I was, more or less, brought up to do so).
IronBalls, today I have to heartily agree with you. The system will become a real clusterf(&ck if they try to bring currently deregulated units back into the system. Insane.
Do anyone knows why we have rent stabilization?????!!! First it was put in place after WW2 because Landlords was gouging servicemen coming home from war. Plus the city build the Projects to provide housing for returning servicemen. is not for RS middle and lower class of people could not afford NY.
Now the reason for Rent Stabilization is if you remove RS rents would DROP!!!!!!! Yeah DROP and that would be very bad for landlords because they would have to compete for tenants! The Landlords would cut back on vital services and you would have slums instead of Apartment buildings! Ask anyone who grew up in the Bronx if they want to return to the days of that crap..
The What
Someday this war is gonna end…
This is what I said would happen months ago.
The Democrat politicians in this city are beholden to the system scamming immigrant masses who elected them. What’s so surprising?
I’m worried, but I don’t think I’ll be in much trouble unless they force landlords to actually lower rents, which I suppose is always possible with the extreme pandering that goes on in NYC politics.
What are they trying to achieve by putting $2500/mo studio apartments in Soho back under regulation? Obviously the single professionals living in such apartments won’t be effected by regulation one way or the other.
Out of sixty apartments I own, there’s only one family living in any of them, and it’s mine!
What “middle class families” are they talking about protecting? Under the current rent laws, as long as the tenant really occupies his regulated apartment, he can’t be evicted anyways.
As usual, NYC Democrat politicians are pandering “what else can we give you?” fools.
in other words – Regulation is good if benefits the powers that be and the wealthy but when benefits ordinary people it is bad for society. Motto of a true republican.
I shudder to think that I am about to engage The What on an issue of substance, but here goes:
What, not all regulation is bad. Not all government intervention in the markets is bad. There are examples of smart intervention. TARP (the success of which is properly measured by how much worse things could be, not how much better we wish they were) is one such example. The current bailout package is, in my opinion, a very bad idea. Rent regulation was and continues to be a very bad idea.
TARP was designed by a very smart group of people who were able to move very fast under emergency conditions. The current bailout bears none of these traits.
I don’t think rent stabilization is going to go away any time soon when we have NY senators and the Governor having rent stabilized places.
On a practical note – surely the presence of rent stabilization is factored into the purchase price a landlord pays for the place?
This of course comes the same week that we discussed rents falling around 20% in NYC due to…. wait for it… market conditions. Most elected representatives are happy to support a bad idea if it will give them a shred of popularity with a public that can barely be trusted to balance their checkbooks.
“I, of course, am in agreement with the other free market capitalists above.”
So Dave that means you are against “Bailouts” for Wall Street Assheads, right?
“Rent regulation has been a horrible experiment. The law of unintended consequences always takes over when men and women of limited intellectual means attempt to regulate markets. This is bad long-term news for renters.”
This “experiment” was in place before you moved to this city Dumbass!
“The law of unintended consequences always takes over when men and women of limited intellectual means attempt to regulate markets”
This can apply to our Government and the imploding Mutant Asset Bubble!! You want thing to be one way and the next second the other. There will be some form of Government Intervention one way or another.
If you have a problem maintaing a building, you should sell it ASAP. No one forces people to become Landlords.
The What (Obama will save us, right?)
Someday this war is gonna end…