More than two years after a city study found Rochester’s rental vacancy was too high to justify rent control, there is a mounting push for a do-over – with new rules.
Under a new state law, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Dec. 8, a clear protocol is laid out for how a vacancy study is conducted, the results of which determine whether a city qualifies for rent stabilization. Under the bill, landlords would be required to respond, or risk being fined $1,000 and losing their certificate of occupancy. Absent a response, a property would be recorded as fully occupied, thus driving down the city vacancy rate and making it more likely to meet the threshold for rent control.
The move comes as rents continue to spike in Rochester. For reference, the Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates fair market rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the Rochester Metropolitan area at $1,050 in the 2024 fiscal year. That’s an increase of $275, or 35%, from the 2020 fiscal year.
State Assemblymember Sarah Clark, D-Rochester, was the sponsor for the Assembly’s version of the new law. She sees the policy as an opportunity for a local do-over.
“I think it’s worth doing, and we don’t know 100% what it will be,” Clark said. “But we do know you can’t make a housing plan if you don’t know what’s going on.”
Local lawmakers Harry Bronson and Demond Meeks joined Clark in pushing the legislation, whiles Samra Brouk and Jeremy Cooney co-sponsored the bill in the Senate.
The city’s earlier vacancy study was voluntary and estimated non-responses as the average for other buildings.
If a city’s housing stock is determined to be less than 5% vacant for buildings built before 1974 with more than six units, the city would be eligible for coverage under the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019. That law limits rent increases annually to 7.5% or the average of the previous five years determined by a “rent guidelines board,” whichever is less. The law also gives tenants in good standing the right to renew a lease.
But how the study was carried out in Rochester has become a point of contention. Just 37% of landlords responded to the study, which determined the city to have a 9% vacancy rate, thus not qualifying for the protections.
The law itself specifically notes the study in Rochester as an impetus for setting the new protocols.
“Both the city of Kingston in Ulster County and the city of Rochester attempted surveys, but many landlords ignored requests or shared inaccurate information leading to results that did (not) reflect true vacancy rates,” the Senate bill’s justification reads.
Kingston’s first survey found a 6.7% vacancy rate in 2020 but was panned by critics who thought it overstated how many units were on the market. The city redid the study in 2022, with the stipulation that any non-reporting building would be counted as fully occupied.
The result was a vacancy rate of 1.6%, and Kingston became the first upstate city to secure rent control. In the second study, 33 out of 1,270 units, or 2.6%, were excluded for non-response.
The Rochester City Council first approved a vacancy study in December 2019, under pressure from housing advocates. It was carried out by Mullin and Lonergan Associates, Fourth Economy Consulting, and Highland Planning at a cost of $40,000. The final results were released in October 2021.
City Council has yet to introduce a new bill which would trigger a second study. The Rochester City-Wide Tenant Union plans to begin a push for a new study next month.
“We just want a strong study that’s accurate, because what we really need is housing stability for everybody, whether you’re a homeowner, renter, anybody,” said Ryan Acuff, an organizer with the Tenant Union. “If we do a strong vacancy study, we believe we will find a low vacancy rate, which will make us eligible for rent stabilization.”
Council Vice President Mary Lupien, a long-time housing advocate, had harshly criticized the previous vacancy study for its low response rate. She said redoing the study is critical for stable housing in the city.
“Rents are skyrocketing, they are rising way faster than the rate of incomes, and I think, as a city, a part of the reason why we pay taxes is for the common good, and we want to make sure people have affordable places to stay,” Lupien said.
