When Larry & Autumn ran one of their greatest points of preaching was "SAFE, AFFORDABLE HOUSING". The second bullet point was for a rental inspection program, which would be REVENUE NEUTRAL and would "pay for itself". I'll address how it's actually the tenants who pay for this in a minute, but let's go now to the Jaime, Gretchen and Jack campaign. They have the same exact talking point, but they have excluded the part that states REVENUE NEUTRAL.
They may have forgotten that the City of Erie Landlords sued the City because their program was not revenue NEUTRAL. The following are excerpts from a GoErie article found here:(https://www.goerie.com/news/20180325/schember-pursues-settlement-of-erie-rental-inspection-lawsuit)
While city of Erie officials take a closer look at the performance and finances of the city's rental inspection program, Mayor Joe Schember's administration is pursuing a deal that would end a pending lawsuit that landlords filed years ago over the program.
In that lawsuit, the Apartment Association claims the city overcharged landlords for the cost of running the program, inappropriately allocated revenue from the program, and unfairly targets certain groups by making some properties exempt from inspection.
State law mandates that revenue from the program cannot exceed the necessary cost of administering it.
So, maybe they forgot they can't make money off of this program to make up for the cities deficit?
Now, let's get into the "pay for itself". They charge the landlords to register for the program and that covers the cost of administering the program. Unfortunately, those costs will not end up just being the sole responsibility of the Landlord. This could mean rents get raised as a result of this program being implemented. Also, if the rental fails inspection and needs re-inspection due to an issue caused by the tenant, the tenant could be responsible for the cost of re-inspection out of pocket.
Now let's say we're all good with them inspecting these properties...
We have the issue of invasion of privacy and tenant discrimination. They forgot to tell tenants that the inspection would occur at a time that's mostly convenient for all parties. Re-inspection if necessary, would also be when it's mostly convenient for all parties. But, why are they only inspecting the homes of those who rent? Do they think we're slobs or our standards for a quality rental are lower just because we rent? If it's about safety for the City and its residents, why aren't they inspecting all properties?
Better yet, why aren't they using the code enforcement officers already on City staff? Did you know if there's a suspected violation of City ordinance that the code enforcement officer can come knock on anyone's door and ask to enter to inspect the property. (We have the right to deny entry without a warrant)
So, if they really cared about safety in the City, wouldn't they already be looking into some of these properties that are in clear violation of the City Ordinance? Why do they think us renters are the only ones living in subpar housing, or "having items of little to no value or use" (this part comes from the Titusville rental inspection program as one of the things they look for. These 3 candidates, along with Larry & Autumn are wanting to model their inspection program after Titusville and Erie's).
In the end this isn't about SAFE or AFFORDABLE, it's about being nosey and trying to create a revenue stream.
Comments