New Laws Would Empower Tenants Caught In Three-Quarter Housing ‘Black Market’ Posted on October 7, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone in Gothamist Despite Mayor de Blasio’s recent efforts, about ten thousand New Yorkers are estimated to be living in overcrowded and hazardous three-quarter houses—apartments, primarily in central Brooklyn, where landlords have been known to cram addicts, recently r ..Read More
Medical Treatment Should Be My Choice, Not My Landlord’s Posted on October 6, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone in Gotham Gazette The landlord gave him a choice: go back to using heroin or be kicked out onto the streets. “Do what you do,” the landlord told him. So to keep a roof over his head, after nine months clean and sober, he got high. The landlord let him stay. Strange as this ..Read More
Today’s Read: Federal Rules Hiking Rents Could Hit 56,000 Low-Income Families Hard Posted on October 7, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone Update: On November 15th, HUD announced that it had exempted New York City and other cities with a vacancy rate below 4 percent from the changed rule. The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program is one of the most powerful tools for ensuring housing stability ..Read More
Coalition Testifies on Three-Quarter Housing Posted on October 6, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone On Thursday, the Coalition for the Homeless and The Legal Aid Society presented testimony in support of a package of bills that would curb the abuses of three-quarter house operators and help tenants assert their rights and access more stable housing resources ..Read More
NYC Worries Federal Rules Hiking Rents Could Hit 56,000 Low-Income Families Hard Posted on October 5, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone in New York Daily News New federal rules could hike the rent for 56,000 poor New York families by hundreds of dollars a month, officials said Wednesday. The Obama administration is hoping to tackle economic segregation by overhauling rules for Section 8 vouchers — subsidizing more ..Read More
Ending Homelessness in Manhattan is Harder Than Keeping Good Data Posted on October 6, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone in amNewYork You walk past a homeless person and you have a few options — ignore someone obviously in need or try to help: hand them a sandwich or candy bar, a dollar or two. But there is another way to help. If you think a homeless person needs assistance, you can call ..Read More
NYC Makes Affordable Housing Lottery Process Easier for Homeless After Lowering Credit Score Bar Posted on October 4, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone in New York Daily News The city has revamped its affordable housing lottery process to help give homeless applicants a leg up, and also added new rules that ban denying any application over bad credit. Officials are allowing homeless applicants to be considered with a credit score a ..Read More
Homelessness Hits New Record High, City Says it Could Be Worse Posted on September 30, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone in Gothamist The homelessness rate in New York City reached a new record this month. On Wednesday, September 28th, 59,948 adults and children slept in city shelters. The official count is expected to hit 60,000 in a matter of days, up from 51,470 in January 2014, when Mayo ..Read More
Homelessness in NYC Hits Record High With Nearly 60,000 People in Shelters Posted on September 30, 2016 by Jacquelyn Simone in The Huffington Post Homelessness in New York City has hit a record high, but government officials say those figures could have been much worse. The number of people living in homeless shelters operated by the Department of Homeless Services is about to surpass 60,000 people for t ..Read More
