“Questions of Rent Tactics by Private Equity”

A May 5^th New York Times article reports that private firms are buying up rent-regulated buildings, and tenant
advocates say the new owners have begun harassing tenants to increase vacancies. Attorneys from our Queens Legal Services Office, among others, are representing tenants in the targeted buildings.

Private investment firms have been buying up thousands of
rent-regulated apartments across New
York City expecting to generate quick profits by
increasing rents after existing tenants leave their units. Tenant advocates say
that they are beginning to see a pattern of harassment and intimidation of
residents of rent controlled apartments intended to force them out of their
homes so that the rents can be raised. In the past 4 years, developers backed
by private equity firms have acquired almost 75,000 rent-regulated apartments.

Read the New York Times article HERE.