Over 25% of apartment renters in New York City have not paid their rent since March, according to the Community Housing Improvement Program, which mostly represents landlords of rent-stabilized buildings.
With the coronavirus pandemic leaving many out of work, paying the rent is proving difficult, if not impossible, for many, especially those in rent-high cities such as New York City. Under New York state’s Tenant Safe Harbor Act, tenants cannot be evicted when they are facing financial hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, landlords can continue to require rent, meaning tenant debt may keep growing.
“Maybe you reduce the number of people arriving at homeless shelters, but you’re likely exacerbating generational poverty as a consequence,” Neil Steinkamp, a managing director at the financial advisory firm Stout Risius Ross, who researches eviction in the city, told Bloomberg in a report published Wednesday.
Sharon Redhead, a landlord in the city, said about 40% of her tenants didn’t pay rent in June.
“We’re rent-check-to-rent-check like our tenants,” she said. “We have small cushions.”
Those who have successfully applied for unemployment benefits are currently eligible for an extra $600 a week, but that bonus is set to expire at the end of July. Furthermore, unemployment benefits have been difficult for many to obtain during the coronavirus pandemic due to an overwhelming demand on the system.
