City Councilmember Martin and Community Organizations Rally at City Hall for Stronger Good Cause Eviction Bill

Representatives from several community organizations gathered on the steps of City Hall

Rochester City Councilmember Stanley Martin and representatives from several community organizations are calling on the Rochester City Council to adopt a stronger version of the Good Cause Eviction Protections in the City of Rochester.

Martin and supporters from several community organizations gathered on the steps of City Hall, Thursday, advocating for city council to close loopholes in the current plan the council is considering by narrowing the real estate portfolio exemption for landlords to 1 rental unit.

“Over half of Rochester renters are rent-burdened, paying 30% or more of their income on rent, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and Monroe County has the fourth highest eviction rate in the state,” Martin said.

Good Cause Eviction Protections protects renters from rent hikes and unfair evictions, as well as guarantees lease renewals to tenants who’ve been paying rent and following their lease.

Rochester City Council member Stanley Martin

Specifically, Good Cause Eviction Protections would require landlords to show they have a “good cause,” such as non-payment or violating the terms of the lease, in order to evict a tenant. Tenants covered by Good Cause will be able to challenge rent hikes that are more than the Consumer Price Index (CPI) + 5% (8.45% upstate as of May 2024) or 10%, whichever is lower, requiring landlords to justify a rent increase by demonstrating increased costs of business (such as increased taxes, insurance, or maintenance costs).

However, advocates says the version city council introduced would be the weakest in the state, as it includes an “LLC loophole” that would allow predatory landlords to evade the law by hiding their portfolios behind anonymous Limited Liability Corporations (LLCs).

The groups want the ‘LLC loophole’ closed by narrowing the real estate portfolio exemption to 1 rental unit.

The law was originally passed by the New York State Legislature back in April and allows upstate municipalities to adjust certain exemptions to adapt to local market conditions and cover more renters.

Rochester City Council introduced legislation for Rochester to opt into the State Good Cause Law in June.

Other upstate communities like Albany, Kingston, Poughkeepsie, and Ithaca’s versions of Good Cause close the ‘LLC loophole’.