As a small property owner in Manhattan’s Chinatown, I am deeply concerned about the good cause eviction legislation being advocated by far-left socialist activists and lobbyists in Albany and the negative impact it would have on my community.
My family came to this country in search of a better life. My grandfather, who arrived in the 1890s from China, bought a couple of houses together on Mott St. as a home for his family and a showcase for his future businesses, which have been in my family for generations.
Like my grandfather, I am immensely proud of my family estate and all that it stands for as a testament to overcoming adversity. The purchase was made during China’s Exclusion Act, a hotly contested asset that meant my family was here to stay. I became a licensed carpenter and contractor in part so that I could make all necessary repairs and ensure that significant upkeep of the building was maintained.
My family’s story is not uncommon. Thousands of smallholders across New York, many of them first-generation immigrants, came to this country hoping to build a better life for themselves and their families. Historically discriminated against by large banks and other financial institutions, it was rare for many in our community to plan for their retirement by purchasing stocks and bonds. So instead, many of us invested our life savings, everything we had, in a small property or two in hopes of sustaining ourselves in retirement and ultimately leaving an asset to our family.
Central to that dream has been building generational wealth for our families. But now, eviction for good cause threatens to take away everything so many families have worked for.
We have heard from city and state legislators that this bill does not target small property owners, but that is not the case.
For starters, eviction for good cause sets limits that do not take into account increases in property taxes and rising operating costs for maintenance, repairs, and renovations.
If the time comes when an incremental rent increase is needed to cover operating expenses, small landlords will have to take each case to Housing Court and pay thousands of dollars in legal fees to explain to a judge why an increase is necessary. to fix the problem. roof or replace a boiler. Not to mention, Housing Court is backlogged with tens of thousands of cases dating back to 2017.
We’ve already seen what unreasonably low rent caps can do, even when well-intentioned. New York rent laws of 2019 changed the legal rent increases restricted for rent-stabilized units, causing an increase in units and buildings in disrepair. When building repairs fall by the wayside, fewer units remain available, leading to higher rents for everyone.
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But what worries me most about eviction for good cause is that it would strip many of New York City’s cherished neighborhoods of their ethnic and cultural heritage and sense of community.
If eviction for good cause becomes law, it would not only put small landlords in the red; it would put many of us out of the market altogether. Neighborhoods like Chinatown would be overtaken by absentee developers and out-of-state management companies that can afford to operate on smaller margins or forgo years of rental income because they own larger real estate portfolios.
In Chinatown, like other ethnic neighborhoods, smallholders rent from our neighbors and live in our community. We provide safe, quality affordable housing to essential workers: delivery drivers, frontline healthcare workers, and New Yorkers who work behind kitchens. We are the ones who help keep our communities together despite rising costs and pressures from faceless, soulless conglomerates looking to buy out our neighborhood.
Eviction for good cause does nothing to protect tenants from eviction for nonpayment and does nothing to address the housing shortage. Instead, we need to focus on solutions like expanding voucher programs to help our neighbors stay in their homes and creating more affordable housing to address New York’s housing shortage.
Having lived in Chinatown my entire life, I have dedicated myself to preserving and honoring the traditions and culture of my neighborhood. I am fully committed to contributing to the well-being of my community and ensuring its longevity for the future, but I cannot be a steward of my community if the Good Cause Eviction takes place.
Albany must reject unworkable ideologically driven proposals, such as eviction for good cause, and get serious about supporting policies that help us build stronger, more resilient communities.
Lee is a third-generation Chinatown small property owner and a board member of Small Property Owners of New York (SPONY).
