If you've had a landlord here in New York, chances are you've had problems getting things done. Generally in my building issues get addressed in a 2-4 month timeframe. When we had that frigid coldsnap in mid-February, our boiler went out and had to be replaced, leaving us in the cold. As bad as that is, it doesn't even come close to what some tenants have to deal with. Rats, seriously leaky plumbing, lead paint and many other problems languish all over the city. Thats why the city council is proposing a bill backed by the Mayor to have a stronger hand in dealing with bad landlords.
From The New York Times:
New York City wants to strengthen its hand against recalcitrant landlords by giving itself broad new powers to overhaul entire building systems — like heating, electrical or plumbing — in long-troubled properties, and to force landlords to pay for the work.
A bill to be introduced in the City Council today with the Bloomberg Administration’s support would give the Department of Housing Preservation and Development the right to go into buildings that have dozens of serious housing code violations and a history of emergency repairs, do cellar-to-roof inspections and fix not only immediate problems, but also the underlying systems.The proposed program, which city officials said would go beyond anything they knew of elsewhere, is intended to bring as many as a thousand severely run-down buildings into compliance with the housing maintenance code over the next five years and to shore up the supply of habitable apartments for lower-income families at a time when the inventory of lower-priced housing is rapidly declining.
Generally I do not like the government getting into matters such as building repair on this level. Yet the problem here in the city with lazy and/or careless landlords is a serious problem and has to be addressed. Normally when I can't get something fixed I threaten them by paying for the repairs myself at a premium and then deducting it from the rent. Many people unfortunately can not do that and when it comes to structural issues neither can I. When the city takes over, they can pay for those major repairs and force the building owners to cough up later.
Speaker Christine Quinn is one of the sponsors and she knows the territory here after being an advocate for tenants in the past. I have my qualms with her leadership in the council but on this I am fully behind her efforts. Don't expect immediate improvements though, the bill wouldn't take effect for at least five months and only for buildings with a certain number of violations. Nevertheless, I am glad it is being pursued.
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