Rent may be too damn high, but so are all the costs of trying to keep a house in New York City. My family works hard but struggles to keep and maintain our home and make ends meet. And, a little more than a year ago, NYC made it even harder when it implemented overly strict short-term rental regulations (Local Law 18) taking away a critical income stream for my family and hundreds of other homeowners just trying to survive.
Thankfully, there is now a bill (Intro 1107) introduced by the City Council that would restore this lifeline for one- and two-family homeowners who live in their homes.
This has been my home and my heart for the last 25 years. In this time, I have raised my children into confident, young adults, built community with neighbors, and have watched my neighborhood and the city transform. While I can say that NYC is as vibrant and safe as ever, it’s also clear that housing security and affordability remains a major issue.
My husband and I, like many New Yorkers, rented for decades with hopes of buying a home. With the help of an FHA loan, we were finally able to reach the American Dream. However, the dream isn’t free. With rising utilities, taxes, insurance and the neverending maintenance costs of a century old home, we turned to short-term rentals to make the extra money we needed to keep our home.
When NYC passed and began enforcing its overly strict short-term rental law, it devastated not only my family, but many hard-working families who relied on short-term rental in our homes. It’s what inspired me to co-found RHOAR (Restore HomeOwner Autonomy and Rights), a grassroots advocacy group of one and two family NYC homeowners who live in our homes, advocating for common-sense amendments to the short-term rental regulations.
While Local Law 18 was needed and created with good intentions, the law goes too far by treating all short-term rentals the same and hurts everyday New Yorkers. As currently written and enforced, the law not only perpetuates existing economic inequities, it also introduces new structural inequities, like those that benefit the wealthy, who can still rent their entire pied-a-terres that sit empty the rest of the year.
Meanwhile, working and middle-income homeowners who live in our homes have been prohibited from renting out our own homes for short stays when we’re traveling or need supplemental income.
Reported from a recent survey, RHOAR’s Brooklyn members have seen a 60% decrease in their monthly income since the law took effect, which is financially devastating for any family. In the year since this law was passed, I have watched my fellow homeowners make difficult choices, including being forced to abandon their plans to age in place and instead selling the home they love, because they could no longer afford their housing costs and the upkeep without short-term rentals.
Instead of the supposed goal of increasing affordable housing and lowering rents, Local Law 18 has made housing unaffordable for vulnerable homeowners like myself.
But, homeowners aren’t the only ones who have suffered because of the law. Our small, neighborhood businesses are losing out on tourism dollars that they sorely need to bounce back from COVID losses. Additionally, Local Law 18 has eliminated much needed local accommodations across Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and the Bronx, limiting access for visiting friends, family and caretakers. And, families can no longer afford to visit NYC with skyrocketing hotel prices.
RHOAR’s homeowners support common sense regulations that stop bad actors, which is why we are calling on the City Council to support Intro 1107, which keeps the most of the regulations intact but rolls back the damaging effects of Local Law 18 restoring the rights of one- and two-family homeowners to resume short-term rentals in the homes we live in.
We’re thankful that our elected officials are prioritizing housing and affordability. It’s a complex issue, and big, bold policies are needed to address these challenges. But, there are also smaller, simple solutions that can make a huge difference, like restoring the right to short-term rentals for one- and two-family homeowners.
The City Council is developing a myriad of housing affordability initiatives, and we urge them to remember that small homeowners need help, too. Passing these small, common-sense changes for NYC working and middle-income homeowners will help increase economic equity and stability, not only for the city’s most vulnerable homeowners, but also for our small, neighborhood businesses and communities.
Sharp is a Brooklyn homeowner and co-founder of RHOAR.
