Housing Displacement

Goal:

Create policy interventions that discourage displacement trends observed in Wards 7 and 8.

Problem:

 _{In many cases, DC policy struggles to hold landlords sufficiently accountable for maintaining a standard level of quality housing for their tenants. This is especially prevalent in areas undergoing redevelopment.} 

We are looking at mechanisms that can be employed to hold landlords accountable to their tenants and to maintaining their properties

Acknowledgement:

Current scope includes all private landlords regardless of number of units, but we understand that different building sizes do affect intervention efficacy.

Challenge #1 - Markets

• The current incentive structure is either lacking or works against good management
• Because of rising property values, landlords may be looking to sell their properties for higher profits and redevelopment
• The culture of the "new" city moving in may inhibit actions that would help preserve affordability and prevent displacement
• Managing buildings can be expensive and labor intensive, which negatively impacts tenants
• Some landlords create Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) and place properties under these companies' ownership. This allows landlords to keep liability at arm's length, which can result in negligence that affects the living standard of apartments
• Absentee landlords are often notorious for not maintaining sufficient living standards in their properties

Challenge #2 - Structural

• Current compliance monitoring is minimal due to multiple factors, including capacity
• Repercussions, whether legally, monetarily, or through licensure, for non-compliance are often minimal, meaning the cost of censure is often outweighed by payments from potential buyers (whether developers or new landlords)
• Government disfunction (struggles within the DC Housing Authority in particular) do not help the landscape for keeping landlords accountable for providing quality housing. Landlords are able to take advantage of the disfunction to avoid censure for non-compliance, public programs, such as those that address mold issues, may not be functioning correctly, further deteriorating housing quality, and the public compliance officers may lack capacity to enforce rules
• There are few avenues for taking legal action against negligent landlords

Challenge #3 - Environmental

• Housing and other buildings are often developed on land that is prone to natural disasters, such as floodplains.
• As flooding and other natural disasters increase in frequency and intensity due to climate change, it can be more difficult to maintain sufficient living standards of apartments.
• This can lead to negligence by landlords