Just got my apt lease renewal - venting

[Olav23]

New York City is a great place to live for awhile .To me once you've seen a play on Broadway everything else just doesn't cut it but I have to say my favorite city is Boston .I could move there in a minute .

I guess to each their own. Someone above listed a bunch of cities they hated, and included my two dream ER spots, New Orleans and Miami. Both cities have quite an energy about them. Not sure if NO has changed after Katrina, but I could die a happy man living in the Garden or French quarter districts, sipping a mint julep on the big porch (and watching the coeds, as someone else alluded to) And the same can be said for Miami

On another note, I called to see if I could do a bit of negotiating. Sounds like they were trying to test the waters. After asking politely they came down from $2300 to $2250, and then to $2200. Still pricey, and a 8% increase, but sure beats 15%. So a bit of stress relief anyway. The lesson learned is, be a good tenant, and call and try to negotiate. It can never HURT you, only help.

 

[mathjak107]

as far as nyc the high rents are partially due to the citys own stupid policies. rent stabilization and rent control are to blame.

rentals havent been built in 20 years .
Where in other walks of life or business is one forced by law to subsidize out of their own pockets someone who can’t afford to buy their products goods or services? The answer is no where except in real estate in New York City, and all New Yorkers suffer because of it. Because one chooses to earn a living in real estate they now have to support someone who can’t afford to live in a particular area or building by getting below-market rates, and accepting less for their investments than the market rate.


Let’s not confuse the fact that someone may live in a building a long time with their net worth or income. They are unrelated. My wife and I live in a rent stabilized building and enjoy a below-market rate. We earn upper-middle class incomes and just because my wife lived in the building for 20 years we pay a lower rent than others in our building. landlords have a right to earn a market-level income from their business just as you or I do. If the city wants to hold the rent levels artificially low, let them put up the buildings and subsidize lower, below-market rentals out of their pockets. Can you imagine going into a grocery store for a quart of milk and telling the store owner I only have a quarter so take it out of your pocket and give me the milk? Let’s see that happen.


Every New Yorker pays higher rents because of this. Landlords haven’t built new rentals in years because of it. Apartments are stored and passed from parents to kids and never see the open market. I’d predict if we did away with rent stabilization and rent control, the supply of rentals would drastically increase and rents for all would come down, not just the select few that live in these buildings

 

[al_bundy]

you have a point, but it goes both ways. the reason some apartments are rent stabilized or controlled is because the original developer got a huge tax break for having some below market rate units in his building.

 

[Brat]

That wasn't the case when I lived in NYC, rent stabilization was a hang-over of WWII price control - long before tax abatement. In those days a 'new' building was a post WWII structure.

Since that era below market rate apartments have been constructed with tax abatement programs, but the program doesn't last indefinitely as some San Francisco residents can attest.

NYC is a special case from a rental pov, but all around the country housing costs are increasing because of the cost of new building code requirements and Planners who act like princes.

 

[Texas Proud]

you have a point, but it goes both ways. the reason some apartments are rent stabilized or controlled is because the original developer got a huge tax break for having some below market rate units in his building.

The difference is that these units are for 'poor' folks... the NYC law applies to the apartment no matter what you make...

I met a lady that was a consultant... she paid $800 per month for a 2 bedroom place... said she would not move because it is SO cheap.. yet she makes more than $150K...

 

[Olav23]

I think the rule is once the rent hits $2k, the rent control designation goes away. That is what I've heard anyway. Also, I find it hard to believe that they wouldn't be receiving some kind of subsidies from the gubment for the rent controlled properties. Is this really true? The owners have to eat the difference?

Milk isn't a good comparison because it IS in fact subsidized by Uncle Sam

And Texas, hook a brother up. How do I bribe her out of that? Does she like young men, or cheap booze?

 

[Brat]

,,,Also, I find it hard to believe that they wouldn't be receiving some kind of subsidies from the gubment for the rent controlled properties. Is this really true? The owners have to eat the difference?

You are much to young....

 

[mathjak107]

I think the rule is once the rent hits $2k, the rent control designation goes away. That is what I've heard anyway. Also, I find it hard to believe that they wouldn't be receiving some kind of subsidies from the gubment for the rent controlled properties. Is this really true? The owners have to eat the difference?

Milk isn't a good comparison because it IS in fact subsidized by Uncle Sam

And Texas, hook a brother up. How do I bribe her out of that? Does she like young men, or cheap booze?

2,000 in rent and 2 years of 175,000 in agi income takes away the rent control. big deal, that rarley happens

 

[al_bundy]

you can also do renovations and there is a formula that says that you can prorate it and it will take away rent stabilization. there is a hole in it where you can literally will an apartment to someone that you rent. but my wife looks at some of these offers and the rent stabilized rents in some of the new buildings aren't cheap and there is an income limitation so it's not like a millionaire can move into a new rent stabilized apartment.

 

[ChrisC]

This thread covers about every aspect of my living arrangements over the course of my life. While I haven't lived in NYC in nearly 35 years, I know a little about rent control. My Dad had great foresight in 1960, when he was still among the working poor, to convince his brother to lend him some money for the down payment to buy a 4 family residential unit in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, which was primarily known as Red Hook back then. We lived in the ground floor, railroad flat apartment, while the other tenants lived in the upper units.

The rent from the 3 other apartments paid for the mortgage he obtained to finance the purchase. All three of the other units were rent-controlled apartments. In the early 1970's, rent control restrictions were slightly relaxed, I believe, such that once a tenant vacated the rent-controlled unit, it ceased to be rent-controlled. My family was really working poor -- Dad was essentially an unskilled laborer and the only real significant income we had was from the rents and later my Dad's social security income.

As tenants vacated the rent-controlled units, my siblings later moved into these apartments. In fact, my sister still lives in one of these units. One of the units, however, is still rent-controlled by someone who knew my family for many years. This tenant has been living in the unit for over 40 years and pays $204 in rent a month. Yes, that's no typo! The prevailing rate for a similar apartment is $2000.

A true rent-controlled apartment, especially since many of them are occupied by senior citizens, is virtually impossible to break. The landlord is at the mercy of the tenant. The rent can only be increased in small increments, even if the landlord makes substantial capital improvements to the dwelling. And if you tried to sell the dwelling the new owner takes subject to the rent-controlled tenant. In fact, there was an article some time ago in the WSJ about lawyers/real estate agents who specialize in negotiating deals with rent-controlled tenants to get them out of buildings for new development projects.

So, yes, owners eat the subsidy created by rent-control; my parents have been eating it for many years; they were truly house rich, cash poor, and rent-control has a lot to do with that.

 

[mathjak107]

its not that hard to break a rent controlled tenants lease. just wait for the 1st repair request to replace say a broken fixture or an old leaky faucet. stall fixing it and let the tenant change it on their own.

inspect the apartment after and file eviction proceedings for unauthorized modification as per the lease agreement. the tenant needs an order from housing court to make a repair on his own and bill the landlord.

very unethical to do but legal. so legal thhat the nys bar held aseminar to discus the ethics of such cases.

 

[ChrisC]

It sure isn't hard to break a rent-controlled tenant's lease when the tenant is unsophisticated, unrepresented, and ignorant of his or her rights. When you stall on not fixing things, a savy rent-controlled tenant will bring housing-code violations against the landlord. We're resigned to the fact that our rent-controlled tenant will only be evicted by death.

 

[Brat]

The Lord will provide...

 

[sagenx]

Go for it!

As an ex New Yorker of 10 years and now living in Cape Town, I would say go for Thailand, great place, land of the smiles. You will never look back, sorry been to New Jersey and it is no Thailand. Americans are really nervous about moving overseas, but those that do, often dont regret it. Funny enough, we are considering Thailand, great weather, great food, reasonable rentals etc. Life is too short to spend it all in NYC, its a must do for a while, but if you are brave enough to do the move to Thailand, I would say go for it!