BILL NUMBER: S1399A
SPONSOR: RYAN S
 
PURPOSE:
This bill would create a grant program run by the Housing Trust Fund
Corporation that would provide grants of up to $75,000 to landlords
owning buildings of five or fewer units in cities with a population of
less than a million people. Units renovated with such grants are
required to be rented at a rate affordable to tenants earning 80% AMI or
less for a period of ten years.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: amends the private housing finance law to add a new article
33. Subsection 1300 of the new article outlines the necessity of imple-
menting a pilot program to provide funding to small landlords to make
improvements to their properties. This section also describes the neces-
sity that small landlords who receive funding must keep their rents at a
reasonable rate for at least ten years. Subsection 1301(1)(a) of the new
article specifies that the Housing Trust Fund Corporation will make
available $75,000 per unit. Subsection 1301(1) (b) of the new article
mandates that landlords receiving the grants must keep their rents at a
rate affordable to tenants earning at or below 80% AMI for a period of
ten years and states that those who do not keep their rents at a reason-
able rate will have to repay the grants to DHCR. Subsection 1301(2)
directs the Housing Trust Fund Corporation to promulgate rules and regu-
lations to administer the grant program including describing the appli-
cation process and determination of "reasonable rate."
Section 2: amends the state finance law to add a new section 99-rr.
Subsection 99-rr(1) establishes a fund jointly administered by Division
of Housing and Community Renewal and the Office of the State Comptroller
known as the "rental improvement fund." Subsection 99-rr(2) outlines the
sources of the money distributed to the fund. Subsection 99-rr(3)
describes limitations on uses of the funds restricting them to use in
the rental improvement fund pilot program.
Section 3: effective date.
 
EXISTING LAW:
None
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York state is currently facing a housing affordability crisis and a
housing quality crisis. With the number of new units being built
throughout the state falling in tandem with the number of units getting
significant overhauls, finding affordable habitable housing in New York
is increasingly a challenge. A high percentage of the rental units in
upstate New York's largest cities sit vacant because they have fallen
into disrepair. Many small landlords do not have the funds to renovate
these units to bring them back up to code. This problem is particularly
acute upstate, where the housing stock is aging rapidly, and rising
costs have made it difficult for property owners to maintain or improve
their property.
The problem does not just affect vacant properties; many occupied units
are also in dire need of upgrades. Buffalo, for example, has a plethora
of homes with outstanding code violations and habitability issues.
Getting these units up to code is good for both tenants and landlords.
Tenants deserve to live in a habitable space and landlords want to avoid
the fines that come with failing to meet standards. In addition, when
landlords improve their units, their long-term value increases. Housing
quality remains a contentious issue in housing courts throughout the
state. Providing the funding for landlords to upgrade their housing
stock would serve to remove many cases from the housing court backlog.
Bringing homes back up to code and on to the market would go a long way
towards addressing the housing crisis. In addition to improving property
values for landlords and improving housing quality for tenants, this
would also be a long-term boon to municipalities in the form of
increased property taxes. Improving the quality of the housing stock
will make the region more desirable to live in.
Landlords that take the grant money would be required to agree to keep
their rents at an affordable rate. This is crucial to ensuring that
rents do not rise drastically in response to improved conditions. This
bill will both increase the quality of rental housing stock and address
affordability.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024: S.8591/A.9325 Referred to housing
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have
become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
on or before such effective date.