How These East Harlem Tenants Won Their Rent Strike

Tenants in five East Harlem buildings won half a million dollars in back rent and repairs in a settlement with their landlord over poor housing conditions They now hope other tenants across the city can learn from their organizing NEW YORK Caroline Schettler in her apartment in East Harlem where she disclosed previous ownership was known for slapping a Band-Aid over something that demands stitches or requirements surgery when it came to repairs Adi Talwar City Limits Tenants in five East Harlem buildings won half a million dollars in back rent and repairs in a settlement finalized this week with their landlord over poor housing conditions It s a mastery for tenants organizing in New York City where Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has pledged to crack down on bad landlords This settlement shows the power of tenants who stand together and demand change disclosed Matt Latterner staff attorney at Manhattan Legal Services These tenants drove one of the worst slumlords in the city from their buildings and won t stop fighting until they get the repairs they need function d u ac var s d createElement 'script' s type 'text javascript' s src 'https a omappapi com app js api min js' s async true s dataset user u s dataset campaign ac d getElementsByTagName 'head' appendChild s document 'u kmqsczew vunxutxmd' The building s the bulk latest owner Isaac Kassirer was number on the list of the city s worst landlords in His firm Emerald Equities and its portfolio of rent-stabilized homes has been struggling for years after the firm s plan to deregulate the apartments came to a screeching halt after when new state laws made taking units out of rent stabilization much more laborious The buildings have been sliding into disrepair since There s so numerous code violations that it s unfixable And you know what it is the landlord wasn t paying the mortgage to the bank all these years They were just taking our money and I don t know what they were doing with it announced Abir a tenant in the building who appealed to be identified only by his first name Emerald Equities did not respond to requests for comment on this story The settlement win comes after a -month rent strike where tenants withheld payments and demanded the landlord make repairs They now hope that their building will certainly get the attention it deserves and that other tenants across the city can learn from their organizing You should stick it to the man if you feel like you are being cheated and if you feel like you re living in unsanitary conditions call disclosed Caroline Schettler a -year-old tenant in the building who works nights on Broadway shows Organizing around bad building conditions Black mold Locked fire exits Broken front doors Leaks No hot water No heat No electricity Roach infestations Stolen safeguard deposits Those were just a scarce of the problems cited over the past six years by the city s housing department and a lawsuit from Manhattan Legal Services This building has been okay at slapping a Band-Aid over something that requirements stitches or requirements surgery noted Schettler The set of five buildings has open housing code violations for units more than four violations per unit The dysfunction took a toll on tenants who described City Limits the repair issues caused them wellbeing problems stress and even risked their livelihoods Abir mentioned that his bathroom roof leaked for months without remedy and developed mold that affected his family s healthcare and made them miss work At one point we were even about to lose our jobs because we would stay up all night cleaning out the water disclosed Abir We would go to our work as zombies I was inevitably thinking about my apartment when I was at work I was perpetually scared to go back home I was inevitably scared that I might get more sick because of this situation that I m living in So that emotional stress I cannot even explain it he added Schettler mentioned that certain days she would have to shower at work or at the local Planet Fitness because of the lack of hot water The set of five buildings has open housing code violations for units more than four violations per unit Adi Talwar City Limits Residents banded together and worked with a local organizing group Region Voices Heard They began meeting regularly laying out demands documenting all the problems with the building and calling the city s line They sued in May To hear stories from other people about all of the same issues that we re having has been really really helpful in not feeling like we re going crazy here Everybody s experiencing the same issues and everybody wants the same solutions noted Schettler How to win a rent strike Management was unresponsive to tenants repeated asks for help with repairs they explained You got to complain complain and keep complaining and nothing is happening I felt like it could cause revenge on us for complaining reported Carlos Rodriguez who moved to one of the buildings seven years ago to take care of his aging mother When landlords don t make repairs tenants can legally withhold rent until they address it setting the funds aside If you re having repair issues in your apartment you may want to consult professional advice before withholding rent But starting a rent strike was scary and multiple tenants feared retaliation from their landlord I did not go on the rent strike at first I went on rent strike way after every other tenant because I am a aspirant I m young I had no idea that this would even work and I got so numerous threatening letters from the landlord stated Abir But there is strength in numbers By the end of the -month strike tenants were withholding rent and demanding repairs I did not know organizing had that much power announced Abir In the middle of the rent strike the building foreclosed and the court appointed a receiver to manage the building As part of the settlement which Legal Services NYC began negotiating with Emerald Equities and completed with the receiver residents will receive six months rent credit and pay back the rest they withheld on strike The receiver is legally obligated to use the remaining settlement money and future rent proceeds to fund repairs Rodriguez was one of the lead organizers in his building He explained the settlement is a relief and might help him get particular home medical help for his mom so he could work more That was wonderful because it shows we were in the right It was a relief to not have the headaches running around trying to get our apartment repaired commented Rodriguez Mayor-elect Mamdani has promised to reactivate the Mayor s Office to Protect Tenants among other changes Ron Adar Shutterstock com What s next The incoming Mamdani administration has signaled seriousness about enforcing the city s housing code and rooting out bad landlords and particular advocates hope that it will be a boon for tenant organizing in the city I would recommend to folks who are dealing with bad landlords talk to your tenants talk to your neighbors start holding meetings and start comparing notes The thing that scares bad landlords the greater part is a good tenant association declared Latterner Mamdani has promised to reactivate the Mayor s Office to Protect Tenants which has been largely dormant under Mayor Eric Adams His plan would increase fines for hazardous violations consolidate code enforcement and have the city step in to take buildings in disrepair from bad landlords and give them to society groups At the same time property owners are pressing the incoming Mamdani administration to expand information for owners of rent regulated properties in financial distress arguing the mayor-elect s pledge rent freeze could spiral into worsening conditions for tenants Cea Weaver director of the New York Tenant Bloc disclosed Mayor Mamdani could make the accountability process for landlords clearer We are going to hold you accountable to operating affordable housing alongside the housing maintenance code If you can t do that we are going to offer you money so that you can do it but you have to make the homes affordable Weaver revealed And if you still don t do it we re going to take it away from you Making that pipeline more clear is what I hope the Mayor s Office of Tenant Protection can do Tenants on East rd have dreams of turning the strip of buildings into a society land trust where a nonprofit entity controlled by the tenants would own the property and each tenant would have a condominium In this city it is so often taken for granted we ll just take what we get We re lucky to live here announced Schettler And we still are entitled to electricity We are still entitled to a mold-free and roach-free living space and locks on our doors To reach the reporter behind this story contact Patrick citylimits org To reach the editor contact Jeanmarie citylimits org Want to republish this story Find City Limits reprint program here The post How These East Harlem Tenants Won Their Rent Strike appeared first on City Limits