On December 18, 2024, the New York City Comptroller’s office announced findings from an audit conducted by the New York City Housing Authority Resident Audit Committee. The data from the audit provided four findings: (1) the New York City Housing Authority did not provide Permanent Affordability Commitment Together Property managers a formal procedure to follow regarding non-payment of rent by tenants; (2) eviction rates varied depending on the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together Property manager; (3) the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together Property managers did not report all eviction and pre-eviction activity; and (4) the New York City Housing Authority did not recognize the missing reports, which resulted in the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together Property managers not providing tenants the necessary information and resources they were entitled to regarding eviction.
The Permanent Affordability Commitment Together Property managers were provided no guidance on the parameters for non-payment thresholds to initiate formal rent demand. The managers were only provided the New York City Housing Authority’s Housing Stability and Retention Guidelines which does not provide guidance or set parameters for the non-payment of rent. This caused varied results between Permanent Affordability Commitment Together Property management because they subjectively established their own minimum threshold for non-payment of rent.
The data from the audit shows that the rates of eviction filings and executions varied depending on the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together manager. The eviction rates for Permanent Affordability Commitment Together properties were significantly higher than the eviction rates from traditional New York City Housing Authority developments. The eviction rates of the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together properties were similar to the eviction rates of private rental housing.
Depending on the manager, there was an eviction rate of 1.11%, which is roughly twice the New York City rate. And some managers had eviction rates lower than the Citywide rate, but those exceeded the New York City Housing Authority conventional development rate.
The audit showed the New York City Housing Authority failed to ensure that the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together created procedures for pre-eviction outreach and tenant protections. The managers did not develop standard operating procedures for each of their sites covering pre-eviction outreach, eviction notices and filings, and evictions. Therefore, the managers did not report all eviction and pre-eviction activity.
This also resulted in the Permanent Affordability Commitment Together managers not providing tenants the necessary information and resources they were entitled to regarding eviction. This includes informing tenants they may qualify for financial assistance, using on-site social service providers to assist residents, or entering into repayment agreements. The managers were responsibility to conduct a minimum of two attempts to contact residents at risk of eviction, which was not done.
The audit contains several recommendations based on the data collected. One is the New York City Housing Authority track the performance of Permanent Affordability Commitment Together property managers regarding compliance with set guidelines on eviction proceedings and create internal processes to ensure effective oversight and tracking of pre-eviction outreach conducted by property managers.
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander said, “NYCHA residents deserve genuine input into decisions about their future, and clear information about their options. That’s why we created the NYCHA Resident Audit Committee and followed their recommendation to conduct this audit. Given the massive repair needs, likelihood of funding cuts over the next four years and everyday living conditions that so many residents are facing, NYCHA residents need multiple pathways to comprehensive rehabilitation. Residents can choose to enter the new Preservation Trust, work with a PACT partner or stay in the Section 9 program and keep pushing for a comprehensive modernization, like the one I was proud to fight for and win for Gowanus and Wyckoff Houses in Brooklyn. But they can only do that if they have clear, accurate information about each potential pathway, which many residents told us they don’t have. This audit provides valuable information – both for NYCHA to better oversee the PACT program, and for residents to be empowered to make decisions about the future of their housing.”
By: Chelsea Ramjeawan (Chelsea is the CityLaw intern and a New York Law School student, Class of 2025.)