livingston
20×102mm Vulcan
Rent control is the last thing Upstate New York needs.
Controversy about New York State’s expansive new rent-regulation law has centered on New York City. It’s the city, after all, that has more than 1 million rent-regulated units, whose owners no longer expect rent increases even when physically upgrading apartments but who also face long delays in evicting disruptive, nonpaying tenants. The new law applies statewide, though, permitting municipalities to adopt rent regulation if they choose, and some cities in New York’s declining upstate are considering it. A clear-eyed look at their housing markets should convince them otherwise.
Under the law, municipalities can adopt rent regulation only if they first declare a “housing emergency,” which requires a vacancy rate of less than 5 percent. A superficial look at some upstate cities can give the impression that rental markets there are, indeed, tight. For instance, state data indicate that Buffalo—the largest upstate municipality—has an official vacancy rate of 5.6 percent. But that figure reflects only those 18,000 housing units both vacant and for rent. HUD data tells another story: Buffalo has an additional 30,000 vacant units not for rent—they’re neglected—bringing its real total vacancy rate to more than 9 percent. Buffalo has a problem with housing abandonment, not rising rents or gentrification. So, too, in Rochester, where the official vacancy rate for the entire metro area (including better-off suburbs) stands at 5.5 percent, while the total vacancy rate is almost 7 percent. HUD does not track the city alone, but metro Rochester has 18,800 vacant units not on the rental market.
www.city-journal.org
Controversy about New York State’s expansive new rent-regulation law has centered on New York City. It’s the city, after all, that has more than 1 million rent-regulated units, whose owners no longer expect rent increases even when physically upgrading apartments but who also face long delays in evicting disruptive, nonpaying tenants. The new law applies statewide, though, permitting municipalities to adopt rent regulation if they choose, and some cities in New York’s declining upstate are considering it. A clear-eyed look at their housing markets should convince them otherwise.
Under the law, municipalities can adopt rent regulation only if they first declare a “housing emergency,” which requires a vacancy rate of less than 5 percent. A superficial look at some upstate cities can give the impression that rental markets there are, indeed, tight. For instance, state data indicate that Buffalo—the largest upstate municipality—has an official vacancy rate of 5.6 percent. But that figure reflects only those 18,000 housing units both vacant and for rent. HUD data tells another story: Buffalo has an additional 30,000 vacant units not for rent—they’re neglected—bringing its real total vacancy rate to more than 9 percent. Buffalo has a problem with housing abandonment, not rising rents or gentrification. So, too, in Rochester, where the official vacancy rate for the entire metro area (including better-off suburbs) stands at 5.5 percent, while the total vacancy rate is almost 7 percent. HUD does not track the city alone, but metro Rochester has 18,800 vacant units not on the rental market.
Medicine to Kill the Patient
Controversy about New York State’s expansive new rent-regulation law has centered on New York City. It’s the city, after all, that has more than 1 million rent-regulated units, whose owners no longer expect rent increases even when physically upgrading apartments but who also face long delays in...
www.city-journal.org
