City Sees Record Level of Eviction Prevention Cases

In FY 2013, the Human Resources Administration, the City's Social Services Department, disbursed an unprecedented $121.6 million in rent to private landlords on behalf of tenants facing eviction. By comparison, HRA paid landlords only $48 million in FY 2005.

Housing advocates say they've never seen this many New York City tenants in trouble. One Bronx agency reported serving more than 1,300 eviction prevention clients last year. 

On the tenant side, eviction is usually the result of job loss, resulting in rent arrears. From the landlord side, eviction can be the result of stealth rent increases on rent-stabilized units or legal rent increases after a vacancy. The more empty units are "churned," the higher the legal rents -- and the more rent payers it takes to lease the unit. As a result, overcrowding in rental housing in New York City is now at "epic" levels.

Last year, 138,732 eviction cases were filed in New York City. The number of completed evictions has held steady over the past three years at about 30,000 annually. More cases are filed than evictions completed because tenants move out or find ways to come up with the rent -- including an HRA "one shot" -- after being brought to court.

Under the deBlasio administration, the city Department of Homeless Services has mounted an eviction prevention public awareness campaign, "Reach Out Before You're Forced Out of Your Home", and has opened more "Homebase" centers offering tenants eviction prevention services. But despite increased staff and funding for these homelessness prevention initiatives, about 56,000 New Yorkers, most of them families with children, are homeless. They have been caught, advocates say, in the affordable housing crisis sweeping the city.

Elderly people living in rent-regulated apartments in gentrifying neighborhoods are at high risk of harassment and eviction based on claims that they live elsewhere, or that their pets, belongings or behaviors are a nuisance to other tenants.  In 2013, the city's Adult Protective Services (APS), which evaluates (often elderly) tenants alleged to be mentally or physically handicapped, was involved in 2,054 eviction cases.

Landlords, for their part, claim that often the only way they can get their tenants to pay rent is to take them to court, and that increases in city taxes, water and sewer have put pressure on rents.

They don't talk about the real estate market. 

The article from AMNY.