University Neighborhood Housing Program
2011 Affordable Housing ForumNew York City's Multifamily Housing in Distress
Using the Building Indicator Project to identify and address physical and financial distressThursday, April 28, 2011
Breakfast 8:30 -9:00 a.m.
Forum 9:00-11:00 a.m.
Fordham University's Rose Hill Campus in the Bronx
Faculty Lounge, McGinley CenterDownload the Report here (PDF)
The number of New York City ’s multifamily properties in physical and/or financial distress is on the rise, according to research based on UNHP’s Building Indicator Project. The BIP database, conceived in 2003, launched in 2004 and improved and expanded over the following six years, works as a tool to identify levels of distress in buildings with at least five residential units using publicly available violation and lien data. With input from housing and banking professionals in the public, private and nonprofit sectors, UNHP tested, analyzed and refined a scoring system where properties with a score of 800 or above warranted further examination to confirm probable physical and/or financial distress.
Documenting the growing disconnect between sales prices and net operating income in Bronx multifamily housing in the early 2000s, as well as the swelling number of households with a severe rent burden throughout the decade, led UNHP to believe that levels of distress in the local housing stock would rise. Speculative landlords would not be able to meet debt service payments without cutting back on services to buildings, especially as other operating costs such as water and insurance were increasing dramatically. The need for a tool like the Building Indicator Project was apparent.
Currently, the BIP database tracks violation, lien and lender data for more than 62,000 properties in four boroughs, and the most recent data shows nearly 3,400 properties containing approximately 135,000 apartments scoring at least 800 points, marking a significant increase from both the spring of 2010 and the fall of 2009.
Join UNHP and our cross-sector panel of experts as we discuss the results of our research and what it means for decent affordable rental housing in New York City . We will present current data on Bronx real estate trends, housing-related demographics of neighborhoods across the city, and a detailed analysis of BIP data including trends of distressed housing by neighborhood, type of property and by lender. We will also discuss some of the uses of BIP by community groups across the City, and the influence it is having on lenders and public policy.
The forum will be held at Fordham University ’s Rose Hill campus in the Bronx in the Faculty Lounge. The forum is free but reservations are required. Please RSVP to mail@unhp.org with your name, organization, address, and phone. You can also call Catherine Clarke or Ray Alter at (718) 933-3101. Feel free to forward this email to other interested parties.
Directions: The Metro North Fordham Road station is located just steps from campus. The D and 4 trains stop at Fordham Road, a 10 – 15 minute walk from campus. You can also transfer from either train to the Bx12 bus heading east along Fordham Road to Fordham Plaza. The Third Avenue entrance to campus is located across from Fordham Plaza.
- For a map showing the subways in the neighborhood, click here.
We hope you will join us for this important and timely presentation and discussion on the state of New York City’s rental housing.
