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I have to in general agree with Hilltopjay. The NYC laws make it almost impossible to get rid of a tenant, so anyone you bring into your building is theoretically a lifetime commitment. So the only leverage you have is the very beginning, so you must screen tenants heavily and never take a government subsidized tenant (welfare or section 8 for example, but there are lots of different programs).
And the reason why is that typically those on government programs like section 8 are very bad quality tenants, and will wreck your home and make your life miserable because they just don't care. And they don't care because they have nothing to lose....they have nothing, and if you do somehow manage to evict them after several years, they simply get put back into the system and into another apt..where the whole thing happens again!
The simple question is this: Are you more interested in the short-term money, or the quality of the tenant and your own sanity? If you just want the short-term money, then take the section 8 tenants and with it all the inevitable social problems, devaluing of your property, increased difficulty in renting other apts to quality tenants as they don't want to live around the welfare cases, and the monumental NYC bureaucracy including yearly inspections, paperwork, and really bad service if you ever have a problem.
I would much rather get a lower rent and keep my apt vacant for 6 months than take a welfare/section 8 tenant. In the long run you get people who work for a living, understand the value of a dollar, respect themselves, you and your property, and generally are a positive addition to your building and neighborhood. My advice is to stay away from the welfare/section 8 tenants...alot of times it is the city trying to unload their problems onto private landlords..and once they are in your apt...they are your problem and the city does everything it can to keep them in your apt. Beware!!!!
You've gotten some good advice here on how to appropriately screen a prospective renter. Listen to it.
The up front application fee is a great one. Even if it is nominal, it is amazing how this will filter out applicants.
You MUST do the credit screens, criminal background checks, and talk to employers and ensure steady employment with paycheck stubs etc... You must talk to prior landlords (at LEAST the past 2) and even consider asking for additional references.
It is shocking how landlords ask for landlords/employer/references, and then never call them.
I have lived in an assortment of apartments over the years, and each landlord has a nightmare tenant story. Never just trust your gut/first impression. Check out every single tenant, the same way. Even folks that "look" good on paper (have a good job) can be scam artists. My last landlord had to evict A LAWYER from their apartment. This lawyer turned out to be notorious for not paying rent. The landlord had never bothered to call previous landlords, because they were so excited about getting a lawyer to move into their apartment..... big mistake. All the prior landlords started the conversation with.... "why didn't you call me earlier?....."
I agree that a wonderful tenant can be Section 8 - especially if they are elderly or disabled, and want to treat your house like their home.
Sobroguy above is right on - the NYC housing laws ALWAYS favor the tenant over the landlord. I used to work for a small L/T firm (briefly, and only because the lawyer I worked with had significant experience in the field and was the "go to" guy at my old firm for such issues) and let me tell you - the amount of HEADACHES Section 8 tenants bring with them are just astonishing! Many housing court judges, especially in uber liberal venues like Brooklyn and the Bronx will adjourn hearings indefinitely to allow tenants to "get their act together" - even if that same tenant has no intention of paying rent for another 3, 6 or 8 months. Very, VERY few judges want to order evictions - they dont want to risk losing re-election in that county, or face counter-suits from angry tenants who have no place to live. It will take a long time for a landlord to get an Eviction order, and permission to go through proper channels for eviction (lock outs, sherriff' removal of tenant personal belongings out onto the street, etc).
I, for one, will never rent to a Section 8 (or any other gov't assisted program) tenant. My downstairs neighbor made that mistake a few years ago, and that tenant was a disaster zone to everyone on the floor..their teenage son would have drug dealers come into the building, loud parties, garbage left outside the door, noisy pets, etc. The landlord had a lot of trouble evicting that person - going to housing court several times over 1 year to get the necessary paperwork to evict.
I already have my unit on the market 2 months, and will have it stay empty for the right tenant to come along - if that takes another 3-5 months, so be it. Proper screening prevents these issues,,and while there MAY BE solid tenants in the Section 8 program - those are the exceptions and not the rule.
In my opinion, stay away from renting to Section 8 tenants. From my experience, Section 8 tenants are among the worse types of people to rent to. They bring with them a lot of baggage and lifestyle issues that may degrade your property and/or neighborhood. You might get lucky and find a respectable and polite Section 8 family but those are far and few between.
Also, don't fall for the typical Section 8 line tenants give you about "your rent will always be paid on time" to entice you to rent to them. The government's portion of the rent may be on time (if there are no maintainance issues in their apartment) but the tenant's portion is not a guarantee. Besides, the trade off for the "on-time" rent payments from the government is that you get stuck with people of a lower class, lower standard of living, and possible trouble makers. Simply because the tenant stock of Section 8 tenants here in NY is not that great. Chances are you'd get stuck with some ghetto a$$ tenants. Do you really want those type of people living in your property?
While me and hilltopjay normally don't agree on things I have to agree with this... While I do know of a few personal cases where struggling families who were hard workers could only manage through section 8 and paid their rent on time without any problems, those are definitely in the minority and not the majority.
Yes, legally in NYC you cannot discriminate based on how tenants' rent is paid (i.e. section 8 or any other government program). PROVEN drug use and criminal activity are grounds for eviction, how will you prove it? And what happens when you do? You do realize it will still take 6 months minimum to evict a tenant under the best case scenario, all the while they pay nothing and will likely wreck the apt and make life miserable for everyone else. They have nothing to lose at that point.
Do big property owners or managers do a better job with section 8?
I am surprised to find out the Related has multiple section 8 buildings under its wing. They serve the rich and the poor for a profit. Money is always green no matter where they come from.
That is true..there is lots of money to be made off the government (whether it be section 8, gov't contracts, etc). For small time landlords the risks are too great..for larger landlords like Related, they have deep pockets, expansive administrative support, attorneys on staff, relationships throughout the city, and can easily handle these issues.
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