Res. No. 1255
Resolution calling upon the Commissioner/Chief Executive Officer of New York State Homes and Community Renewal to amend the Rent Stabilization Code to disallow "preferential rents" that are not for the duration of the tenancy.
By Council Members Dickens, Brewer, Chin, Jackson, Palma, Rose, Williams and Rodriguez
Whereas, There is currently a severe shortage of affordable housing in the City of New York; and
Whereas, According to the 2011 New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey (HVS), the vacancy rate for rental apartments was only 3.12 percent; and
Whereas, The low vacancy rate is an indication of the City's affordable housing crisis; and
Whereas, The City has seen recent losses in affordable housing due to withdrawals from the Mitchell-Lama and project-based Section 8 programs, and the loss of rent-regulated housing due to decontrol; and
Whereas, Funding for the construction of new affordable housing has not kept pace with New York City's needs; and
Whereas, Affordable housing programs keep neighborhoods economically diverse and vibrant by allowing low to middle-income New Yorkers to remain life-long residents of the City; and
Whereas, One such affordable housing program is the rent stabilization system which is in place to stabilize neighborhoods and to protect tenants from harassment and unreasonable rent increases or evictions; and
Whereas, The stability provided by the rent stabilization system has helped to lessen the impacts of the severe housing shortages and market conditions in New York City; and
Whereas, According to New York State law, New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) has the power to promulgate amendments to the Rent Stabilization Code (RSC) for the rent stabilized apartments occupied by approximately more than one million New Yorkers; and
Whereas, HCR serves the important public duty of establishing safeguards for tenants against unsubstantiated rent increases; and
Whereas, Currently, the RSC provides for property owners to charge tenants a "preferential rent" which is rent that is less than what the property owner would ordinarily be entitled to receive under the rent stabilization system; and
Whereas, The RSC also currently allows property owners the option of charging a "preferential rent" either for the term of the lease or for the entire term of the tenant's tenancy; and
Whereas, Such "preferential rents" for the term of the lease may result in unaffordable rent increases for tenants at the end of their lease resulting in a rent for the new lease term that they might not be able to afford, forcing a tenant to move; and
Whereas, In order to lessen the chance of an unaffordable rent increase when a tenant's rent changes at the end of a lease term from a "preferential rent" to the regular rent stabilized rent, the RSC should be amended to only allow "preferential rents" for the duration of a tenancy for the term of a lease; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the Commissioner/Chief Executive Officer of New York State Homes and Community Renewal to amend the Rent Stabilization Code to disallow "preferential rents" that are not for the duration of the tenancy.
LS# 3223
BJG
3/19/12