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Cuomo’s Power Tested on Rent Regulations

5 Comments

  • NYC Renters' Alliance
    Posted June 9, 2015 at 10:46 am

    The problem that he has is that everyone knows that the rent regulations are terrible for most NYers — they drive free market rents higher, inefficiently use housing, and cause RS buildings to pay less property tax than they would in a free market system; they also can cause landlords to abandon property.

    He needs the support of the NY tenants (and Heastie), but if he has national ambitions, defending the right of a 38 year old to pay $600/month living in his grandmother’s 4-br rent controlled apartment is going to have some seriously negative optics.

    • RIKKI
      Posted June 9, 2015 at 12:18 pm

      the landlord always has a right to offer cash for the lease………truthfully its only fair….he paid far less then full price when he bought the building with the stabilized apartments, and will reap a huge windfall getting rid of the RS tenant…so the tenant should share in the gain….

      • NYC Renters' Alliance
        Posted June 9, 2015 at 12:45 pm

        Not sure that this is relevant. A guy paying 1/3rd of market rate for a rent stabilized apartment means that the landlord is paying 1/3rd of market rate property taxes for that apartment. This shifts the tax burden to everyone else (me included!).

        But you are correct in that if the LL gets lucky, most his gain will be capital gains from the property appreciating in value, rather than income from rentals, giving him a form of tax-advantaged speculation (though he can also lose $$$$$, or run out of money waiting for the tenant to leave).

        BTW: one R/S tenant got a $17mm buyout, which is totally unconscionable.

  • RIKKI
    Posted June 9, 2015 at 12:11 pm

    i will say this again for the last 15 year the problem has always been landlords can upgrade an apartment and spare no cost because they can always increase the rent 1/40 per month….. the amount of viking $3000 stoves on the 5th or 6th floor walkups were amazing the last time i looked for an apartment….no one just puts in a $300 sears stove anymore

    second housing advocates were totally clueless on how easy it is to get a $500 apartment to $1500 legally….just rent to the dumbest tenants you can find students divorcees people that wont stay for 20 years then upgrade and add 20% for each turnover ….its easy.

    • NYC Renters' Alliance
      Posted June 9, 2015 at 12:42 pm

      We’ve seen some pretty ridiculous stuff as well… jaccuzis in studios, apartments combined or divided to get them out of rent controls, etc. There’s a strong bias towards renting to high income people who will leave soon (e.g. not to families with kids), which just shows that dictating the price of the initial rent has really bad consequences for the city. CAlifornia allows LLs to rent at market rate; in NYC, owners of vacant low-rent apartments often try to combine them rather than do crazy and wasteful renovations.

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