Rent Protection Laws Due for Renewal in New York

Michael Herzenberg reports that a rent protections for a million New York apartments could expire in June if the State Legislature doesn't act. State lawmakers, mostly Democrats, are "likely to renew the expiring" that caps rents on many apartments in New York, but tenants of rent protected apartments in the city still need to pay attention.

"Under the current law, the Rent Guidelines Board determines the rent increases each year for the city's rent stabilized apartments," explains Herzenberg, "But there are loopholes to the law as housing advocates call them, which allow landlords to raise rents despite the Rent Guidelines Board."

One such loophole, Vacancy Decontrol, was responsible for 155,000 units lost to the rent stabilized rolls, according to Herzenberg.

Mark Willis, senior policy fellow at NYU's Furman Center, is quoted in the article predicting a clash between landlord and tenant interests as the law's renewal is considered in Albany.