Testimonial of Landlord about to Loose Everything, due to Reliance on Work Advantage Rent Subsidy Program

Dear Anonymous:

Thank you for providing a landlords perspective. You tried to do the right thing and thought you could rely on an agreement backed by the government. Unfortunately the profit margin is greater in homeless shelters and prisons. It would be nice if you could charge the government interest and penalties like they charge you when you are late on your taxes or other government obligations. It's easy to disguise this as an assault on the poor but it also affects the middle class and landowners who have always been the pillar of American society. Didn’t anyone in government realize the ramifications? Did they care? Do they stand to profit? One more short sale for a bank to lose depositors funds due to a top heavy property on the market with an insolvent property owner who cannot cover the deficiency. Please do look into mortgage re-modification programs and please don't let emotions cloud your judgment. Unfortunately, sometimes holding on trying to do the right thing hurts you more in the long run. Please seek out professional guidance. Good luck.

Please see the following comment posted by a landlord about to loose his property due to his reliance on the Work Advantage rent subsidy program.

Gregory
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Anonymous said...

I am an Advantage landlord who can offer the owner's perspective on this issue. I signed a lease,(which is a legally binding document) with my current tenant, supported by the state of New York guaranteeing rent payment each month. After signing the document I moved ahead with the arrangement with the understanding that payment would be issued monthly. In reality, payments were far from consistent. There were times when I had to wait 3 or 4 months to find the funds deposited in my account! I too was laid off from my job. Needless to say I got behind on mortgage payments and have not been able to recover. For the first 10 months of my period of unemployment, I was able to remain current on all of my financial obligations. It was not until Advantage payments became unpredictable that I had ran into problems. Now, I learn that I will no longer receive the subsidy at all!!! There goes my home!! From the beginning the plan was to accept the program, (in the past I flatly refused to accept programs of any kind. I took working tenants only) and its GUARANTEED rent! Guaranteed and backed by a legal document called a LEASE. Right? Well here's the kicker-- I'm broke! Foreclosure is immenent. During these 17 months that I am laid off I have spent $10000 on property maintenance, including a $7000 furnace for my TENANTS apartment! This expense hit me during the months where Advantage owed me several months rent. Where is my public assistance? Where is my shelter? Who is going to swoop in and help the landlords like myself, who have kept up our end of the deal-- even when we were not being paid. Don't get me wrong, I think this situation sucks for everyone, but in the end its the tax-paying landlords that will suffer most. Where is my shelter. My home is going into foreclosure because of this situation! Where does public assistance play into my picture? The answer to both questions is ,'there is no help for me!'. My home is going into foreclosure, while nine times out of ten, somebody or some city, state, or federal agency will run to my tenants rescue. Her worst case scenario is going back to the shelter. Mine is losing my home, and not having a shelter or public assistance available to me.