Free Republic

A couple seeking to rent an apartment believed they had done their due diligence to avoid a scam but they still fell victim to one. After verifying their property agent's licence and meeting his assistant for house viewings, a woman and her husband found themselves waiting for their keys alongside two other couples on Monday (Sept 16), all of whom had signed leases for the same unit. Their agent has since remained uncontactable, said the woman who only wanted to be known as JM. In an interview with AsiaOne on Wednesday, JM, a fitness instructor in her 30s, shared that...

A resident of Springfield, OH, has told a city commission meeting that locals are being displaced from their homes to make way for Haitian migrants. The man, who has not been named, said the federal government was paying “triple the rent” for Haitians arriving in the town, thus incentivizing landlords to prioritize immigrants over existing residents. Addressing the city commission, the resident – who said he’d worked with the homeless community for more than 25 years – said he didn’t know of “a single homeless Haitian in this town because they all got vouchers” from the federal government. A resident...

A Connecticut mom moved into a hotel with her two children as a cheaper alternative after she was forced out of the home she had rented month-to-month. Suzanne Hayes was caught off guard in February when her landlord broke the news that the house she had been living in for the past six years was put on the market and she would need to move out before March 1. “I loved my house. It had a charm of its own and was within walking distance to both my ex’s house and the kids’ schools, and my landlord never increased the...

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Texas-based real estate company RealPage, accusing it of artificially inflating rent prices across the country. The lawsuit alleges that RealPage's software uses nonpublic data from landlords to generate pricing recommendations, effectively quelling competition and leading to higher rents for millions of Americans. According to the DOJ, RealPage's software enables landlords to share confidential, competitively sensitive information and align their rents. "Americans should not have to pay more in rent because a company has found a new way to scheme with landlords to break the law," Attorney General Merrick Garland said...

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Syracuse Common Council is looking for community input before they vote to opt in or out of the state's Good Cause Eviction Law. The policy aims to protect tenants, requiring landlords to have a legitimate reason to raise their rent or evict them. The law is mandatory in New York City, but local municipalities outside New York City have the option to adopt the policy or remain without it. Outside Syracuse City Hall on Monday, the Syracuse Tenants Union voiced its support for Good Cause Eviction at a rally, arguing it would help more tenants stay...

On Wednesday, in Darby Development Co. v. United States, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (which reviews takings claims against the federal government ruled that a takings lawsuit against the 2020-21 federal eviction moratorium can proceed. In so doing, it overruled a trial court decision by the Court of Claims, which I criticized here. The decision could well end up setting an important takings precedent. In September 2020, during the Covid pandemic, the Trump Administration Centers for Disease Control (CDC) imposed a nationwide eviction moratorium, claiming that it would reduce the spread of the disease. The Biden...

When it comes to New York City real estate, it’s no secret that a large amount of money gets very little in return. Apartment search website RentCafe has now calculated just how little that amount of space is for the average $1,500-a-month renter in the five boroughs — and the answers are rather grim. “Although the South and Midwest offer more generous terms, major coastal job hubs are places where renters on a fixed budget need to sacrifice square footage to benefit from the countless opportunities these areas offer,” prefaced the writers of RentCafe’s report, which looked at how far...

BRIGHTON, N.Y. — A new program in Brighton hopes to help stabilize folks in poverty. The Brighton Landlord Tenant Project will connect pro-bono lawyers with people facing evictions. Forty-two percent of people in Brighton are renters. Town Supervisor Bill Moehle says the goal here is to tackle systemic poverty and stop people who are in a bad situation from making it worse. This program is run by the local nonprofit Just Cause. When you show up in Brighton Town Court a volunteer lawyer will be there, offering to help you with your eviction case. Most of the time they don’t...

President Joe Biden will propose on Tuesday a nationwide cap on rent hikes of 5% per year, according to The Washington Post, which cites “three people familiar with the matter.” The proposal will rescind unspecified tax breaks to landlords who raise rents by more than 5%, although it would only apply to landlords who own more than 50 rental units. This would cover roughly half of all rental units in the country, according to Post sources. It would not apply to units that haven’t been built yet so as to not discourage construction of new housing, which the Biden administration...

According to a Pew Charitable Trusts study, rising rental prices are directly linked to an increase in homelessness in the United States.As Statista's Ann Fleck reports, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s homelessness data and Apartment List rent data from 2017 and 2022 shows that of the six metro areas where homelessness increased the most, rents had also risen faster than the national average.These were Sacramento, Fresno, Raleigh, Phoenix, Austin and Tucson.You will find more infographics at StatistaMeanwhile, four areas that saw declines in homelessness also saw below-average increases in their median rents.The writers of the report explain:“There...

$4.2 million will go to develop supportive housing in Ithaca. Governor Kathy Hochul has announced that Steuben Churchpeople Against Poverty (dba Arbor Housing Development) will use the money to construct 20 permanent supportive housing units. The proposed Stately Apartments will feature laundry facilities, a community room, a garden, and commercial space. “Creating new permanent supportive housing is central to my administration’s work to reduce homelessness across New York State, while simultaneously supporting strong neighborhoods throughout our state,” Governor Hochul said. “When completed, these projects will provide vulnerable New Yorkers with an affordable place to call home and the security and...

The iconic restaurant chain Hooters has abruptly announced the closure of 40 locations nationwide, citing the rising cost of food and rent. ...... While Hooters may not be to everyone’s taste, the closures are further evidence of the economic toll caused by rampant inflation, which has soared since the Biden regime seized office in 2021. Last month, the Red Lobster restaurant chain announced that it would be filing for bankruptcy and closing nearly 120 restaurants across 27 states after sustaining continued losses. Meanwhile, a recent survey by Lending Tree found that having once been an affordable alternative for lower-income workers,...

I have been a landlord for ten years and I manage 41 residential and commercial office units in Tompkins County. About 2/3 of these are low or moderate income residential. I currently employ three full time staff. I became a landlord because I wanted to work on converting existing buildings to not use fossil fuels - I made the capital in the first place in the tech industry not by real estate investing. I also have significant bank financing. When I started, I greatly under-estimated the challenges of being a landlord and have been in an intense learning process. I...

According to a report from the nonprofit group Child Care Aware of America, child care costs have surged significantly, surpassing average rent payments for families with more than one child across all 50 U.S. states. Here are the key findings: National Average: The national average cost for child care increased by 3.7% from 2022 to 2023. Families with two kids in a child care center pay an average of about $20,000 yearly across the Midwest, South, and West. In the Northeast, the cost is even higher, exceeding $32,000 annually.

It turns out renters and homeowners are living in two entirely different economies, at least according to a new study by the Federal Reserve—which, ironically enough, made it happen.In short, renters are in dire straits financially, while homeowners are “continuing to reap the rewards” of cheap pandemic money that left renters with nothing but inflation.This is “complicating” the Fed’s crystal ball as homeowners continue to splurge on everything from travel to eating out, “propping up prices with their discretionary spending power.”Of course, the Fed’s money printers are what are propping up prices. But the robust homeowner spending means they’re not...

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted an unannounced raid on the Atlanta headquarters of Cortland Management on Wednesday, May 22. This action marks a significant escalation in a criminal antitrust investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) into allegations of a nationwide conspiracy to artificially inflate apartment rents.

President Joe Biden has imposed a huge migration tax on young Americans’ housing costs, but his tame media allies are hiding the evidence. “A shortage of housing, inflation, and high interest rates are squeezing renters around the country and pricing out potential home buyers,” the Washington Post told its readers on May 28 under the headline “Skyrocketing rents and home prices may be pivotal in the 2024 election.” The New York Times provided its readers the same don’t-blame-Biden’s-migration theme on May 27 with the vague headline, “America’s Affordable Housing Crisis”: President Biden worries about high housing costs … Tens of...

Governor Kathy Hochul announced that 213 municipalities in New York have launched applications to be certified as Pro-Housing Communities, with 61 already certified. This certification, part of a program initiated by Governor Hochul last year, makes municipalities eligible for up to $650 million in state discretionary funding. The Pro-Housing Communities Program acknowledges localities committed to housing growth. Six communities in the Finger Lakes – including the city of Canandaigua, and villages of Dundee and Newark received certification from the state. Governor Hochul emphasized the importance of building safe and affordable housing. “My administration is ready to work with any community...

The Minnesota Senate on Friday approved a package of partisan changes to landlord-tenant law that are poised to make housing more expensive for renters and create significant burdens for landlords. The landlord-tenant conference report is the product of an agreement between Democrat House and Senate negotiators on SF 3492, the landlord-tenant bill the Senate passed by an overwhelmingly partisan vote in April. Sen. Eric Lucero (R-St. Michael), the lead Republican on the Senate’s Housing and Homelessness Prevention Committee, issued the following statement sharply criticizing the misplaced priorities in the bill: “The cost of housing in Minnesota is dramatically more expensive...

Celebrity chef Madison Cowan has relied on soft eviction laws to avoid more than $145,000 in rent payments on his Brooklyn apartment the past four-and-a-half years, his landlord claims. The British-born former champ of the Food Network’s “Chopped” and “Iron Chef” owes 53 months in back rent on a one-bedroom Boerum Hill pad he and his family have occupied since October 2019, according to landlord Gus Sheha. Cowan hasn’t paid a cent of rent since January 2020, relying on legal loopholes like repeatedly appealing eviction orders to remain in the State Street apartment, said the landlord.