good cause eviction
good cause eviction = rent control
APTS of NY is advocating at the state level against Good Cause Eviction. Please see their website for details.
June 2023 | Was NOT passed this legislative session. Will be a fight in January again.
February 2023 | Albany challenged the court ruling, and lost. Good Cause is banned in the City of Albany
January 2023 | Good Cause Eviction introduced to state legislature
June 2022 | NYS court struck down the City of Albany's local Good Cause Eviction legislation.
March 2022 | At the Rochester city level, we fought & stopped good cause eviction in the form of Intro 94.
Good cause eviction
The solution to the Housing Affordability Crisis is to increase the supply of housing, Good Cause Eviction reduces housing supply
What is Good Cause Eviction?
Good Cause Eviction (aka Just Cause Eviction or Lease for Life) is legislation which removes a Housing Provider's ability to terminate a tenancy at the end of a lease term. Leases become permanent or lifetime (lease for life). The only way for a Housing Provider to terminate the tenancy is to bring the resident to court for violation of the lease or nonpayment of rent. Your leases become permanent contracts with no end date.
In addition, the bill would institute a cap on rent increases (3% or 1.5x CPI) and allow a resident to challenge a rent increase above the amount allowed by the bill. This bill would also establish pseudo-rent control.
1. Good Cause will reduce housing supply and discourage improvements
Fewer new units will be built, distressed properties will stay vacant longer, & more buildings will fall into disrepair.
Additional legal fees & litigation time will be a substantial burden on housing providers.
Starved for revenue, owners’ only way to stay in business will be to cut costs by reducing improvements, repairs, and maintenance.
Upstate housing is predominantly older and it is already costly to keep in good condition. Good cause is directly at odds with the more important goal of improving conditions.
Less frequent turnover and fewer new units will drive up rents for new tenants.
2. Good Cause Eviction will hinder tenant mobility
An empty nester will stay in their rent stabilized 3 bedroom apartment long after the kids move out, because downsizing will cost them more. This keeps the 3 bedroom off the market for the next young family to move into.
A new family will be forced to stay in their rent stabilized 1 bedroom apartment because moving into a new, larger apartment will be too expensive, leading to overcrowding.
3. Good Cause Eviction will reduce local tax revenue and increase abandoned properties.
Property values will stagnate or decline, development of new units will decline, & existing vacant properties will not be renovated and added to the tax roll.
Good cause will increase the number of vacant properties. Upstate cities already have many zombie properties that are not economical to renovate. This will occur even more under good cause rent control.
4. Good Cause Eviction will impair the removal of disruptive and dangerous residents
Housing providers will be required to prove in court that a resident is in substantial noncompliance of the lease in order to remove disruptive residents. These cases can be extremely hard to win, as not all nuisances result in physical or photographic evidence.
Residents are unlikely to testify in opposition to harassing or even dangerous residents as this could place them in harm’s way.
5. Good Cause Eviction = rent control; which universally known as a failure
Sacramento & Cambridge have comprehensive studies on Rent Stabilization & its adverse effects. Stockholm & Berlin have recently come to the forefront of failed Rent Control policies & showcase a 9 year waitlist for rent controlled units in Stockholm.
Rent control has been studied for decades, and economists overwhelmingly agree that it has an overall negative effect on housing.
American Economic Review Poll 93% of economists agree.
6. Solutions must focus on increasing housing supply & providing rent assistance to residents in need
Increase funding to rent assistance programs & housing choice vouchers
Increase programs for owners & developers to offer affordable housing
Empower local code enforcement agencies to follow up with routine violators
Points based system currently being proposed by City government is a great solution for this
good cause eviction
RHC POSITION | Functionally this law only changes 1 aspect of eviction law; indefinite leases. Housing Providers must already provide cause for eviction, this just entitles the tenant to an indefinite lease (aka lease for life or right to renew). Housing Providers will be forced to scrutinize applicants even further in order to avoid placing a tenant that disturbs the neighbors and proves difficult to evict under this legislation. Resulting in higher rents & fewer housing opportunities for low income tenants, who are the most in need of housing. (those with poor credit, job history, rental history, criminal record, and anything but a perfect reference from their previous landlord)
The passage of just cause eviction laws eliminate a property owner or operator’s right to serve a nonrenewal notice on a resident at the end of the lease term. It would require an owner to "show cause" and obtain a court order to terminate a lease. This process also pits neighbor against neighbor. Under JCE laws, owners and managers would have to rely on crucial evidence to evict problem residents including resident testimony. Residents are unlikely to testify in opposition to harassing or even dangerous residents as this would place them in harm’s way.
These policies foster an adversarial relationship between rental property owners and their residents as they become frustrated with the inability of property owners to act on their complaints and remove problem residents. When issues arise, community residents are subjected to living on the property without relief while the investigative and judicial process to convict an individual of a crime takes time. The outcome is good residents move out.
NAA Talking Points
Just cause (also known as “good cause”) eviction does more harm than good.
Just cause eviction requirements inhibit owners and managers from effectively managing their properties and put good residents at-risk by limiting the ability of housing providers to remove problem residents.
Such requirements impede a property manager’s ability to quickly respond to concerns from resident, community groups and surrounding neighbors i.e. noise, criminal activity and threatening behavior by residents or their guests at apartment communities.
When issues arise, community residents are subjected to living on the property without relief while the investigative and judicial process to convict an individual of a crime takes time. The outcome is good residents move out.
This process also pits neighbor against neighbor. Under a just cause eviction regime, owners and managers would have to rely on crucial evidence to evict problem residents including testimony by residents against their neighbors.
Residents are unlikely to testify in opposition to harassing or even dangerous residents as this would place them in harm’s way.
These policies foster an adversarial relationship between rental property owners and the residents over time as residents become frustrated with the inability of property owners to act on their complaints.
Increasing the burden of proof for eviction increases owners and operators’ legal liability and adds to operating costs for rental properties. And resident turnover costs money. It can add up to thousands of dollars when lost rent, repairs and marketing of rental properties are factored in.
The costs add up and will eventually be shouldered by residents in the form of rent.