New legislation known as “Good Cause Eviction” is currently being debated in Albany. The bills, which are identical in the Senate and Assembly, aim to prohibit evictions without good cause.
Renters on fixed incomes in Rochester support the bills, but property owners have expressed concerns about the potential effects on pricing and driving landlords out of business.
Members of the Rochester Tenants Union, including Justine Harris and Patina Jones, believe that a lack of affordable housing in Rochester and Monroe County is leading to too many renters ending up in court too easily for eviction.
They argue that renters should have more of a say in renewing their leases and that the Good Cause Eviction bills would fix a broken system.
If passed, the bills would prevent landlords from raising rents by more than either 3% or 1.5 times the annual percentage change in the region’s consumer price index without justification.
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