Willamsburg, NY – For years, the address has sent shivers through the spines of tenants throughout North Brooklyn: 199 Lee Avenue.
Home of Lee Avenue Shipping and Communication, it is the site of more than 350 brass mailboxes where many Brooklyn tenants mail their rent checks, month after month, without necessarily knowing who their landlord is.
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This could change with new legislation introduced this week by Manhattan Councilmember Melissa Mark Viverito (D-East Harlem).
On August 18, Viverito joined several members of Make the Road New York and Brooklyn housing attorneys on Lee Avenue in South Williamsburg to announce her proposal to require landlords to register principal owners with the city.
“The only interaction between some tenants and their landlords right now is a mailbox. That cannot stand,” said Viverito. “Registration of landlords needs to happen. It’s a way of unmasking who the landlords are and holding them accountable.”
As proposed, the Multiple Dwelling Registration Bill will seek to require landlords organized as limited liability corporations (LLC) to register the names and addresses of all individuals who share ownership in a multiple dwelling, beyond the 25 percent share threshold currently required by the city.
The bill would also seek to apply the city’s administrative code to multiple dwellings instead of just single room occupancy (SRO) buildings, vastly expanding the number of buildings within the city’s purview.
According to attorneys with South Brooklyn Legal Services, the managing agents and corporation officers of buildings are often difficult to reach.
In many low-income Brooklyn neighborhoods, buildings in foreclosure have often changed owners quickly, leaving a trail of names that may not have the authority to make decisions on a property.
The resulting confusion over ownership of a property often makes it difficult for tenants and housing advocates to resolve problems outside of the courts.
“I meet people every day and their first question is often, ‘Who is my landlord?’” said Michael Grinthal, staff attorney with South Brooklyn Legal Services. “It can take days of research to find out.”
Make the Road members made a rare trip to South Williamsburg to visit the site where many of them mailed their rent checks to.
At a makeshift press conference on the corner of Lee Avenue and Heyward Street, MRNY member Otilia Rios spoke about the consequences of having multiple unknown landlords for multiple dwellings in his neighborhood.
“My neighbors and I have no idea who actually owns our building and has control over its daily operations,” said Rios. “Over the last three years, I have had serious problems in my apartment, including a roach and rodent infestation. When I call the number provided by my landlord to try and resolve these problems, no one answers and my calls are not returned. When I send letters to 199 Lee Avenue, I get no response.”
Though Make The Road New York’s membership base is primarily Latino and many LLCs registered at 199 Lee Avenue have strong Hasidic connections, Executive Director Javier Valdes emphasized that the Multiple Dwelling Bill was not indicative of a conflict between Latino tenants and Hasidic landlords but a measure to promote transparency and protect all low-income tenants.
“I think about all tenants living in safe and affordable housing and this can benefit Hasidic Jews in this area as well,” said Valdez. “We feel what is really important is that people live in safe conditions. Hopefully we will be able to know what is really behind these LLCs.”
A worker at Lee Avenue Shipping and Communication declined to comment.
Can anybody explain what’s going to be difrent if they know who the landlord is?
Why is this a hasidic problem? Why do we need a law for this? I think the option for the tenent should very clear up front, you either pay your bill to the mail box or just don’t rent the appartment. Why make it tougher to make a living in nyc. As mentioned, go to court if the landlord does not perform.
Why is this a hasidic problem? Why do we need a law for this? I think the option for the tenent should very clear up front, you either pay your bill to the mail box or just don’t rent the appartment. Why make it tougher to make a living in nyc. As mentioned, go to court if the landlord does not perform.
Good bye to slumlords!
There are similar laws in other parts of the country and they work well. Landlords who fulfill their obligations have nothing to fear. It is only the slum lords who oppose transparency.
good law shine the lights on the slumlords
to #2 if you are a honest landlord there is really no need to hide behind a po box.
It will make it harder for slumlords and that is a good thing.
32 Why make it tougher to make a living in nyc.
Why is providing a who the landlord is making it harder to make a living.? maybe you can elaborate. I have worked for many landlords and we always provided the address and where to call if there was a problem? The apartments where
in Harlem and east Orange both minority areas
I admit it will be harder for unscrupulous landlords to make money, I consider that a good thing.
Maybe now when newspapers publish the worst landlords there will be less Jews on the list now.
Next thing ÝÓuy know, they will track down his family and harrass them
I work in Willy at Natans, not real estate and I am not Satmar.
I would think that tenants and landlords both have obligations. If they do what they should do there is no problem and if they do not there are cures.
This pressure is by left leaning hotheads that want everything for free, shades of the sixties.
This is a simple reason to harrass people, most of this guys don’t like the idea of landlords.
They try to figur out who is a partner in a LLC, this is just to harrasment.
The current HPD law require to file a name a number who is the liable guy to fix the problems.
The rights are already there to get repairs etc.
They just like to get more names to bother when they decide they need an excuse to break their lease.
If this isn’t about chasidim why make the press conference in front of 199 Lee Avenue, why not make it in midtown at any UPS store or other private mailbox rental place?
Simply put; Council person thinking about more vote’s Can you imagine ona 2,500 apartment complex; Attacking the Landlord ;;;;;;;;;;Is like feeding raw meat to sharks;
this is crazy… lets just paint a target on the landlords – give the tenants the name and home address and you are creating a situation that will increase crime to new levels. Everyone knows that with one call to 311 your landlord immediately gets a call from the city about any complaints. if the landlord does not fix the issues within days HPD inspectors are there to issue fines and penalties. The horror stories I can tell about the sicko tenants who complain about anything but really dont want you to fix anything and will not let workers come in to the apartment to fix anything – ythey are more comfortable living with roaches and not pay the rent…scum !!
More regulation and more regulation, when is all this communism going to end?
While i understand the need for tenants to have issues resolved, there is the flip side to take into account. The super of the building is on payroll for that very reason- to resolve any issues tenants may have. If he cannot resolve it, it is because the landlord does not want him to so it wont be resolved outside of court anyway. Exposing the landlord will only place his life and the lives of his family in jeopardy. Take for example a disgruntled tenant that has been evicted for lack of rent payment- if he knows who the landlord is, it can be dangerous. This law is totally pointless & can bring only harm! (for all those wondering, no, i am not a landlord- i own NO property!)
The Housing courts are so slanted against landlords as are the sdom laws they have that the tenants wind up winning and even if not they drag it out for years owe thousands and … repeat process elsewhere….. If anything landlords need protection.
Stop with THE RENT CONTROL/’STABILIZATION, and let the market work it out. Like with bread, sugar, meat, cars, airline tickets etc.
Why does a tenant need to know who the landlord is ??? They anyway stop paying if there are problems no landlord wants tenants to come over for chulent shabos afternoon
there are good landlords and good tenants and the opposite.when a new owner bought the building i lived in,he stopped trash pick up,refused to repair the elevator or broken lights in the garage etc etc.he had a guy calling the tenants,harassing them to move because he didn’t want to pay tenant resettling fees as per LA county regulations.we called gov agencies,city councilmen all to no avail because this guy(a yid from bklyn) was a multimillionaire.money talks.
We need to pin up Bloombergs personal home address and and all city officials, council members hoe address and address of their family members, which school they go to etc.
Under “freedom of information” there is no reason they should hide their home address.
Arguments for arguments’ sake only.
The truth is that many landlords are grredy and do not keep their buildings in shape. Had they kept their buildings in better condition they would get better tenants. The situation we are in is due to unscrupulous individuals who seek a get but don’t give approach. Perhaps on both ends of the stick…
Can qwe get the home address of all the city council n senate ppl, so whenever I sopt a pothole or a broken meter I’ll call them home or knock on there door, after all they are the landlord of the city! This is so stupid what our elected officials do with their time!
if you have a problam, just don’t pay the rent. your landlord will contact you……
i think that the best is to use a managment comp & shalom al israel lol
The tenant always know who their landlord is, it’s on their lease. The landlord may not be an individual person, it may be a corporation. The point of an LLC is to minimize personal liability. Unless every corporation is required to reveal all officers and members there is no reason why landlords should be.
The City requires all multifamily buildings to register and name a person who is responsible for repairs. If a tenant does not feel that their issue is being resolved by the landlord they can call 311 who will contact the responsible person and or make emergency repairs.
Additionally multifamily buildings (defined as 4 or more dwellings) are required to have a super. The super serves as the owner’s agent.
The calls for transparency were no more than a politician’s effort to show their constituency that they are doing something.
More often than not apartments in disrepair are due to slum tenants as opposed to slumlords.
listen a landlord is permitted to have all his tenants mail rent, disputes , claims , etc, to a designated maiul box it can hold 1,000 names its a free country you dont have to give out to every nasty tenant your private name & address so he can come this goiy or schwartze or p.r. or every cholerya, nock on your door ring your bells even midnite call ur home phone, bang on your doors , my refrigerator bulb is not burning. i went out of toilet paper my beis hakise iz farshtopt , we are in the united states of america we have to follow the laws and thats it you dont have to b trash , a tenant has to behave and follow rules and regulations and keep the lease as a legal document and obey and not leak in the elevators and hallways turn out bulbs, break locks , break walls , etc, a landlord has the fullest right to live in a p.o.b. and 2 b discreet, a kesiva vachsima tova.