Elmira landlords respond to city’s new monthly “worst landlords” list
ELMIRA, N.Y. (WETM) – A new resolution by the Elmira City Council to publish a monthly list of “worst” landlords is being met with some concerns from landlords. Some say the resolution is unnecessary and sends the wrong message.
“First of all, I want to make sure everybody knows that I’m not against tenants, I actually like to work with tenants,” said Rickey Paul, President of the Chemung County Landlord Association. Paul is also a Licensed New York State Broker & Property Manager for his company “REP Home Sales & Services” located in Downtown Elmira.
Paul says the Chemung County Landlord Association holds monthly meetings to educate landlords on the right way to manage properties and keep landlords up to speed on current codes and laws.
“We are not for landlords that are not doing the right thing. This is why we try to bring education.
Paul says the association also connects tenants with resources if they fall behind on rent.
“The last thing we would like to do is go to court and evict people. I want that to be put on record,” said Paul.
In a 5 to 1 vote Monday, the Elmira City Council approved a new “Fight on Blight” resolution. It calls for publishing a list of rental properties that don’t fix code violations on time, are not properly registered or refuse inspection. The resolution is a bipartisan effort being led by Mayor Dan Mandell and newly elected Fourth District Councilmember Gary Brinn.
“There is no need for this list. That’s my strong emphasis on this,” Paul added. He says rules and laws already exist to punish landlords who are not properly registered or don’t take care of their properties. Depending on the code violation, Paul says fines can climb above $1,000 per day.
“The resolution is really unnecessary, because they have a policy already in place about landlord registration. There are repercussions they could do. Under the New York State building codes, there are also resolutions they could do with people who are not taking care of the properties. So, the putting our landlords are the internet, I believe is the wrong thing. We’re not allowed to put bad tenants on the internet. It’s against the law to do that. Our question is, why would it be okay for the city to do that to landlords if we can’t do that with tenants?”
Elmira approves “Fight on Blight” resolution for worst landlords & zombie homes
Paul says the city did not involve landlords in any discussions before passing the resolution. “We had no idea until I got a text from somebody, showing this was coming about,” Paul said.
Bill Brougham says he has been a landlord in the City of Elmira for more than 30 years.
“People walk by, they see a rundown house, automatically it’s the landlords fault. Not necessarily so,” said Brougham. “We also have another issue with property managers in this City and County. There seems to be a rash of them lately.”
“Now, when you take over the reigns as a property manager, all of a sudden you are not liable for anything. So, if something happens to the house, Code Enforcement or whoever comes in and says hey, this is a violation, the property manager says, you know, I’m just managing the place, it’s the owner.” Brougham added. ‘Well, the owner could be in Timbuktu, could be in New York City, and a lot of them are. I know owners that are in Australia. They come here because properties are so inexpensive.”
“So, the property managers, for the most part, not all, but they’re working illegally. There are certain rules and regulations in the State of New York they should adhere to, but it’s never run down, it’s never checked. So, we have a big problem with that, as well as with some landlords,” Brougham said.
“Not everybody is going to be a great landlord. Not everybody is going to be a great policeman. Not everybody is going to be a great councilman. It’s just the way it is, it’s the world we live in. But, to single everybody out, for a few, just doesn’t seem fair, and then to go ahead and post names.”
Brougham says another potential issue is how it will be decided which violations could put a landlord on the bad list.
“Do you know, if the grass at one of my places is 4 and a half inches high, I get violated, will that be on the list If some tenant puts an upholstered chair on their front porch, will that be on the list? See, they don’t address this stuff, all they do is they sugarcoat this thing into making people believe that, if you’re a good landlord you don’t have anything to worry about. Well, that’s not true,” Brougham said.
The resolution passed with bipartisan support in a 5 to 1 vote. Second District Councilmember Corey Cooke was absent. First District Councilmember Nick Grasso was the only one who voted against it. In a statement to 18 News, Mr. Grasso said:
“I had many of my constituents reach out to me, many of whom are landlords. They said if their names appear on the list they would sue the city. To be fair and equitable, there are some very good landlords in Elmira. There are also some bad ones. I’m not opposed to holding the bad ones accountable. The problem is this resolution fails to be fair and equitable to all stakeholders.
Furthermore, placing the responsibility of this discretionary oversight on the Code Department puts an additional burden on its already strained resources.
I’ve been a renter for a large portion of my adult life and know first-hand there are bad landlords who do not want to address issues. Most times, renters don’t have the resources to just up and move, navigate how to properly address the issues working with code enforcement, or fear of being evicted out of retaliation with nowhere to go. It’s a double-edged sword.
Nick Grasso
Elmira City Council – First District”
“Is a lawsuit something you are considering?” reporter Nick Dubina asked Rickey Paul.
“Yes. I actually said at the City Council meeting, that if they do do this, there could possibly be a major lawsuit against the city for this,” Paul replied. “I believe it’s possible, it’s slander.”
In a Facebook post Monday after the resolution was passed, Fourth District Councilmember Gary Brinn wrote:
“Tonight, we passed a resolution that will publish information on unregistered and un-inspected rentals, as well as those with significant un-resolved code violations. Landlords and property managers will not be listed when the tenant is cited. I particularly enjoyed the landlord who threatened to sue for defamation. He clearly doesn’t understand that it is not defamation if it is true. We have too many elected officials that don’t show up for our workshop sessions, that don’t show up for council meetings, or who spend all their time throwing grenades. Ask them what they’ve accomplished. I am proud of the things I have accomplished through careful conversation and careful negotiation.”
Rickey Paul says he is willing to work with the city to create a landlord-tenant coalition that would work towards finding solutions that benefit both sides.
“The Landlord Association is more than willing to sit down with the city, sit down with people that help out tenants, sit down with them and see if we can come up with a resolution to some of these problems. Do we have bad landlords? Yes. Do we have bad tenants? Yes.
You can watch the full interview with Rickey Paul below:
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