New York wants to pay landlords for repairing and renting out one-bedroom apartments
Background: SROs once made up a large portion of New York City’s housing stock.
SROs are typically small apartments with a private room but shared kitchens, bathrooms and other amenities. They are more affordable than conventional apartments, making them attractive to those struggling with homelessness or those on limited incomes.
Although there used to be as many as 100,000 SROs in New York City, according to New York University’s Furman Center, the number began to decline in the mid-20th century, when they became associated with poverty, overcrowding and unsanitary conditions.
The city passed laws that prevented the construction of new units and encouraged the conversion of SROs to other types of apartments. In many cases, SROs were combined with other units to form larger homes for wealthier people.
State officials say they don’t know how many still exist. A 2018 paper from the Furman Center estimated it between 30,000 and 40,000 remained.
Why it matters: SROs are seen as one answer to the housing crisis.
Housing experts and politicians increasingly appear to be looking to SROs as a solution to a national housing crisis.
In New York State – and most visibly in New York City – housing costs have risen because not enough housing has been built in recent decades, creating a massive housing shortage. Affordability issues have contributed to record levels of homelessness, a crisis underscored by the arrival of tens of thousands of migrants in the past few years.
SROs could help better tailor the city’s housing stock to the needs of its population: The Furman Center article pointed out that there were about 210,000 “small” units in the city — including SROs and studio apartments — but there were still there. almost 1.2 million single adults tenants who live alone or with roommates.
Facts to keep in mind: SROs alone cannot solve the broader problem.
The SRO program is small. Many of the units are in very poor condition and need extensive renovation; state officials believe the $50 million could help preserve only about 500 units, illustrating how expensive these types of efforts can be. The housing shortage in the state is estimated at hundreds of thousands of homes.
In the city, leaders are trying to change zoning rules to encourage the construction of smaller apartments, part of a broader effort to make way for 100,000 more homes over the next fifteen years. This requires approval from the municipal council, which will take months.
State lawmakers and Governor Kathy Hochul failed last year to reach an agreement on other major initiatives that many housing experts say are necessary to address the crisis, including a new tax incentive program for affordable housing developments, stronger tenant protections and mandates that suburbs build more housing allow. built.