Apartment landlords could qualify for a $1,500 income tax credit for each unit rented at below-market rents as part of Boston Mayor Martin Walsh’s anti-displacement proposals.
A package of anti-displacement bills submitted by Boston Mayor Martin Walsh seeks to place new outside controls on the landlord-tenant relationship in one of the nation’s most expensive places to live.
Affordable housing advocates say the proposals would preserve neighborhood stability and protect families from speculators seeking to maximize revenues at rental properties. Landlord groups predict unintended consequences, including chilling development and owners’ ability to pay for maintenance.
The most controversial proposal would prevent landlords from evicting at-will tenants or those with expiring leases, with an eye toward renovations and higher rent structures down the road. Backers frame the issue as a quality of life measure, helping middle-class families and other long-time residents remain and preserving demographic diversity.
“We lose people who have been living in these neighborhoods a long time,” said Carol Ridge Martinez, executive director of the Allston Brighton Community Development Corp. “They can’t compete with students or young professionals who will pay for a room for a while, and move out when they have children.”
Named after a Roxbury housing activist, the Jim Brooks Community Stabilization Act would limit the ability of landlords to evict tenants and reposition rental properties.
Currently, landlords can choose to let leases expire or evict at-will tenants even if they’re up to date on their rent. It’s an increasingly popular strategy at smaller rental properties throughout the city, according to tenant advocates.
Landlord advocates say the bill, sponsored by state Rep. Chynah Tyler, would encourage tenants to ignore notices of rent increases.
“Both parties have to sign an agreement before there’s an obligation,” said Skip Schloming, executive director of the Cambridge-based Small Property Owners Association. “If the tenant doesn’t agree, that would produce a rent freeze or only minimal voluntary rent increases that the tenant agrees to.”
Exceptions could be made if tenants were behind on rent, violated terms of their rental agreement, used the unit for illegal purposes or refused a lease renewal. Landlords also could evict tenants to provide housing for family members.
But the measure could backfire on Walsh’s previously-announced strategy of controlling real estate prices by encouraging more multifamily development, opponents say. Walsh has set a goal of developing 53,000 housing units by 2030, and the Boston Planning and Development Agency is considering upzoning sections of South Boston, Dorchester, Jamaica Plain and Roxbury for high-rise residential buildings.
Limiting landlords’ eviction options could put the brakes on the development pipeline, said Greg Vasil, CEO of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board.
“That is the number one absolute worst thing that could happen to multifamily development in the city of Boston,” Vasil said.
Landlord groups also are skeptical of Walsh proposal that would require owners to notify the city of evictions and enhance tenants’ legal representation.
A bill sponsored by state Sen. Sal DiDomenico gives tenants facing eviction the right to an attorney appointed by the Massachusetts Committee for Public Counsel Services. While 59 percent of landlords have legal representation in Boston Housing Court, only 7 percent of tenants do, according to a 2015 report by the Massachusetts Access To Justice Commission.
Tax Credits For Affordable Rents
Walsh also seeks to provide financial incentives to landlords with a new $1,500 income tax credit that would reward them for keeping rents below market value. Martinez of the Allston Brighton CDC said the idea could be effective in smaller properties.
“The workforce housing stock has traditionally been in the owner-occupied multifamily properties,” she said. “It’s an inexpensive way to keep a shallow subsidy so that people can stay.”
But Schloming of the property owners’ group predicted the measure is unlikely to have a significant effect.
“It will motivate almost no landlords,” he said. “For one year, it might be worth it. For two years, with the cost of your losses (in decreased rents), there’s no point in doing it.”
Vasil said the tax credit is a “good start” for small building owners.
“Conceptually, the tax credit makes sense and it’s a great way to start the discussion,” he said. “For a city like Boston that’s strapped for revenues, to give anything (back) is an olive branch.”
The administration also seeks to amend the zoning code to reflect the city’s inclusionary development policy, which requires a minimum of 13 percent income-restricted affordable units in new developments. Both that bill and the Brooks Stabilization Act require city council approval before state legislators can take them up.
The complete list of proposals and an explanation of each are available on the Office of the Mayor’s website.
