In New York City, many homeowners are landlords too, relying on rental income to pay their mortgage, taxes, insurance, and upkeep costs. Homeowner landlords tend to be low- to moderate-income (LMI) and are often concentrated in majority-minority areas of the city.
These "mom and pop" landlords are a critical source of affordable housing — 39% of NYC buildings have 4 units or less — and they disproportionately rent to people of color and LMI New Yorkers, a population also deeply affected by COVID-19. Renters in these buildings generally benefit from lower rents, longer tenures, and overall better relationships with their landlords than those in buildings owned by corporate landlords.
But these homeowners face barriers to maintaining their critical rental income, including finding and retaining good tenants, maintaining their properties, and complying with complex regulations. Supporting mom and pop landlords brings long-term benefits for homeowners, renters, and their neighborhoods, lifting up communities as a whole.
We propose launching a service to support the financial stability of homeowner landlords in New York City, in doing so, supporting and stabilizing the tenancy of their renters. The Service will leveraging partnerships to deliver the following suite of services:
Landlord Education: Coordinating with local housing agencies to disseminate information on landlords' rights and responsibilities and education on fair housing and local regulations. Outreach tactics could include 1) targeted, digital campaigns to homeowner landlords in vulnerable areas; 2) virtual events for mom and pop landlords and tenants; and 3) outreach to trusted CBOs.
Tenant Mediation & Legal Assistance: The service would connect landlords to professional pro-bono mediators and arbitrators to resolve conflicts; pro bono legal support to walk small landlords and tenants through the complex process of securing government or other assistance; and referrals to mediation programs like those available through the New York Peace Institute.
Short-Term Grant Assistance: The service can deliver financial relief to landlords or tenants who qualify through grants and loan products.
Repairs & Property Management: The service would help homeowners assess home repair needs and connect them with lenders and trusted contractors.
Designing a program for homeowner landlords requires a consideration of precisely which property owners are eligible — what housing types and income levels should be included?
Are there income eligibility limitations? Should landlords of any income be eligible for the program or only those below a specific threshold? Should all landlords be eligible or only owner-occupants?
Should landlords be eligible if they charge exorbitantly high rents?
Another important factor in the efficacy of the service is the availability of effective programs for homeowner landlords. Traditionally, small building owners have not been able to access many of the subsidized housing preservation programs operated by the City of New York. The Homeowner Landlord Service will be positioned to connect property owners to well funded and easy-to-access home repair and foreclosure prevention programs, but those programs need ongoing support from city agencies and elected officials.
