Friday Roundup 1-14-22

Last week, a judge ordered New York State to reopen its portal for rental assistance. The portal was shut down in November. On one hand, the state is dawdling in its efforts to provide relief to tenants (and by extension landlords) impacted by the pandemic. On the other hand, with its eviction moratorium and other restrictions, the state is making it increasingly difficult for landlords to operate.

Lawmakers in New York have been considering a “good cause” bill that would essentially end evictions in the state. The law would allow tenants to renew a lease, regardless of the landlord’s desires. Coupled with a rent cap included in the bill, the result will be the equivalent of financial castration. The Rent Stabilization Association, which 25,000 property owners in New York City, warns that the bill would prevent property owners from making repairs and improvements, make it difficult for them to pay property taxes, and will reduce the housing stock in the city.

In a piece from 2018 at Forbes, Roger Valdez writes, “We don’t need more affordable housing, we need more housing so it will be affordable.” He correctly notes that the housing crisis is, fundamentally, a supply shortage: “In a socialist utopia, it will mean rationing by a centralized bureaucracy. In a price economy, there will be an economic motive to build more housing.” This is basic economics, but it seems to escape most lawmakers and pundits.