Res 0609-2015

By The Speaker (Council Member Mark-Viverito) and Council Members Williams, Arroyo, Chin, Gibson, Kallos, Lander, Levin, Levine, Palma, Rodriguez and Menchaca Whereas, According to the 2014 New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey, New York City is current in an affordable housing crisis and has a vacancy rate of 3.45 percent; and Whereas, New York City has affordable housing programs to keep neighborhoods economically diverse and vibrant, and affordable for low and middle income New Yorkers; and Whereas, One affordable housing program is rent stabilization, which limits rent increases and provides tenants with eviction protections in privately owned buildings; and Whereas, New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) administers over 1 million rent stabilized apartments in New York City; and Whereas, New York State law allows a property owner to charge tenants "preferential rent," which is rent that is less than the legal regulated rent under the rent stabilization program; and Whereas, Tenants are usually offered preferential rent at the initial lease because the legal regulated rent is more than the market can bear; and Whereas, When a tenant's lease is up for renewal, property owners may raise the rent back to the legal regulated rent, which may be significantly higher than the preferential rent the tenant was previously paying; and Whereas, Tenants who lose their preferential rent may not be able to find another affordable apartment due to New York City's affordable housing crisis; and Whereas, S.2828, pending at the New York State Senate, sponsored by State Senator Krueger, and A.3809, pending at the New York State Assembly, sponsored by Assembly Member Wright, would only allow a landlord to change the legal regulated rent on an apartment in which the tenant is paying a preferential rent upon the vacancy of the unit, not at renewal; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature to pass and the Governor to sign S.2828/A.3809, which prohibits property owners from adjusting the preferential rent amount upon the renewal of a lease for a rent stabilized unit. LS # 3051 and 4173 3/5/2015 11:06 AM JLC