Last week, the New York Assembly passed a bill that will make it easier for tenants to sure their landlord when certain repairs have not been performed. The bill would allow judges to provide any relief they choose, including a monetary judgment to the tenant. Earlier this year, the state extended its eviction moratorium until the end of August. That moratorium was first enacted in March 2020, which means that tenants will be able to withhold rental payments for a year and a half without any threat of being evicted. While tenants are being protected for their breach of the lease, landlords could face monetary penalties if they violate the agreement. If this bill is enacted, landlords in New York will suffer further. Laws such as this discourage investment in rental properties and exacerbate the housing crisis.
Colorado legislators recently passed a law that allows cities to require a certain number of affordable housing units in new housing developments. Developers can opt out of this requirement by paying a fee that will go into an affordable housing fund. So developers will be paying for more affordable housing no matter which option they choose. Imposing more costs on housing producers, we are supposed to belief, will keep the price of housing from rising. That might work in some alternate universe, but here in reality, imposing higher costs on producers leads to higher prices. And when that economic truth manifests itself, Colorado legislators will scramble to create a new scheme to fix the problems caused by this scheme.
In Oregon, legislators have passed a bill that is intended to reduce the costs and delays of obtaining zoning approval for affordable housing projects by 50 percent. Supporters of the bill correctly argued that reducing the costs and delays imposed by zoning will provide great benefits. This is certainly a step in the right direction, but why not reduce those costs and delays to 0 percent by eliminating zoning altogether? And why should reduced costs and delays only be available for affordable housing projects? The short answer is: politicians want to have their cake and eat it too. Politicians want to give some developers a few crumbs of freedom to produce more housing, but those same politicians want to retain their immense control over land use.