Rent regulation has been a mixed bag in upstate New York, in part, advocates say, because of the way vacancy studies have been conducted. 

Under the rules set by the 2019 Housing Stability & Tenant Protection Act (HSTPA), if a landlord doesn’t answer a vacancy survey, the presumption is that he has no vacant apartments. 

Using that methodology, the city of Kingston was found to have a vacancy rate of only 1.57%, paving the way for the city to enact rent stabilization. Rochester did not use that methodology (much to the chagrin of housing advocates) and that city found a 9% vacancy rate, too high for rent stabilization. 

Jay Martin, executive director of the Community Housing Improvement Program (CHIP), an organization that represents rent-stabilized building owners, told Capital Tonight that New York City has had rent stabilization for 90 years and it still hasn’t provided the affordability that it had promised. 

“The thing to remember about rent stabilization is that it’s not subsidized, so it mandates the rent costs, but doesn’t provide any affordability to the property owner to provide a lower rent,” Martin explained.

As costs keep going up, Martin argued, there comes a point at which the housing deteriorates.

One fix is building more affordable housing, Martin said.  

“We 100% believe that the city and the state need to build more affordable housing. That’s one way cities like Kingston can have more competitive rents,” he said.

The situation in New York City is more complex. 

Because there are tenants who have lived in rent-stabilized or controlled apartments for 20, 30 or even 50 years, and because when those tenants leave their apartments need substantial renovations, the current affordable housing scheme isn’t working, according to Martin. 

To fix the situation, CHIP is advocating for a bill called the “Local Regulated Housing Restoration Adjustment,” or LRHRA, which would allow a landlord to raise rents in order to capture the cost of a renovation.

If the state Legislature passes the LRHRA, the units would be fixed with energy efficient upgrades and remain rent-stabilized. 

“We’re asking for the ability to re-set to a rent-stabilized area market rent so that the property owners have enough money to invest back into the properties," Martin said. "They will stay rent stabilized. Completely staying within the rent-stabilization system and they’ll be able to put voucher holders in, if somebody qualifies for a voucher. Current rents on these units just don’t sustain the affordability.”

Under the bill, which has yet to be introduced, the new rent for the apartment would be in line with the current rents for the area. The owner would set the rent, reach an agreement with a tenant and if the tenant felt the rent on the apartment was unfair they could file a fair market rent appeal, following the current rules outlined by the New York Division of Housing and Community Renewal.  

Tenant advocates are highly critical of the bill. 

Cea Weaver, campaign coordinator for Housing Justice for All, told Capital Tonight that the bill is “masquerading as a way for landlords and tenants to get stable housing, but that is vastly misleading for a bill that effectively repeals the strongest parts of the HSTPA (Housing Stability & Tenant Protection Act), and brings vacancy deregulation and all the incentives to harass and displacement tenants back.”

“If you thought the system tipped in the scales of landlords pre-2019, this is a hugely more generous proposal to the real estate industry than even the pre 2019 rent stabilization system,” Weaver continued.

Martin pointed to what CHIP is not asking for, namely, money from the state.

“Look, we have housing. They have folks who need housing. We are open to discussions so they have better solutions on how to pay for it, but right now we’re not asking for any money from the state to help pay for this.  We’re not asking for a 421a, or a property tax benefit. This is owners using their money to invest back in their properties and, by the way, setting a rent that is affordable to the area rents and stays rent-stabilized. It’s a win win,” Martin said.