New survey finds almost everyone supports rent stabilization

The Community Service Society released a new survey showing overwhelming support for rent stabilization and “good cause” eviction throughout New York state. The group is recommending the passage of new legislation to capitalize on that support as well as increased education for tenants. 

The survey found that 81% of respondents supported rent stabilization and 78% supported “good cause” eviction, a law that prohibits evictions or lease non-renewals without justification. Across all regions, demographics and party affiliations, support for either plan never dipped below 72%. Although the Republican Party remains fiercely opposed to measures like rent stabilization, the survey found that 75% of Republican respondents “definitely support” or “probably support” rent stabilization. 

The survey focused specifically on areas that do not already have rent stabilization or “good cause” eviction laws in effect and ignored responses from people who already benefit from such policies. The overwhelming support for the measures suggests that regions that have not yet opted in to the laws may do so in the future.

While support for rent stabilization was universally high, the survey found that “good cause” eviction laws face an awareness problem, with 58% of respondents being unfamiliar with the law. When described as a law that “would protect tenants in good standing from evictions without cause, and would allow tenants to challenge unreasonably high rent increases,” though, 78% of respondents said they wanted their municipality to adopt the law. 

In the Hudson Valley, where several municipalities have faced lawsuits from real estate groups after trying to opt into rent stabilization through the Emergency Tenant Protection Act, 89% of respondents supported rent stabilization. Support for “good cause” eviction was highest in Western New York, where 84% of respondents indicated support, and the Southern Tier, where 80% of respondents did. 

In response to the survey, the Community Service Society recommended that local governments opt-in to both rent stabilization and “good cause” eviction, while increasing outreach to renters to educate them about their rights.

Under current state law, any municipality in New York is free to opt-in to the state’s “good cause” eviction law. It’s more difficult to opt-in to rent stabilization; the Emergency Tenant Protection Act requires that a municipality first conduct a vacancy study and find that the vacancy rate is less than 5%, at which point it can declare a housing emergency and set up a rent guidelines board.

The Community Service Society is also recommending that the state Legislature pass the REST Act. The bill, sponsored by state Senate Housing Chair Brian Kavanagh and socialist Assembly Member Sarahana Shrestha, would eliminate the requirement that municipalities conduct a vacancy study before declaring a housing emergency and generally make it easier for local governments to opt-in to rent stabilization. 

Sam Stein, a housing policy analyst with the Community Service Society who helped author the report, said he was pleasantly surprised by the results of the survey. He also shared some observations that didn’t ultimately make it in the final report. 

“The level of support wasn't all that different between homeowners and renters,” Stein told City & State. “Presumably, most of those homeowners are not also landlords there, they own their own home. They don't rent to somebody else. But also, presumably, some of them were, and we have plenty of small landlords who have supported tenant protection, because, first of all, they usually used to be tenants themselves. Second of all, they care for the stability of their tenants, and they want them to stay, rather than to always have to find a new tenant.”

Since last year’s housing deal, 13 municipalities in the state have opted in to “good cause” eviction, and four upstate municipalities have tried to opt-in to rent stabilization through the Emergency Tenant Protection Act. But attempts to institute rent stabilization have faced legal challenges, usually surrounding the vacancy study used to declare a housing emergency. Tenant advocates have also planned long-term organizing for tenants, both politically and to push policy as affordable housing concerns persist in the state. 

“Half the state are renters, and I think renters are certainly in touch with the fact that they have limited rights and are feeling the squeeze,” Stein said.