Yes To Property Management Standards For The U.S. Housing Industry

By
Rosemary Foulds
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A group of workers gather in front of a house needing repairs
This scene was created by affordablehousingaction.org and is licensed under CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication
Missing roof shingles are hardly noticeable to a work crew refurbishing a rental house. Should there be standards to ensure their work is done well?

Massive rent increases, poor housing conditions and high eviction rates are earning residential landlords some bad publicity. These practices have been linked to large private equity firms that have been purchasing heavily in multi-residential and single family residential markets in the United States.

Private equity firms are often very large, with holdings in multiple countries around the world. These firms are accountable to their investors, not the tenants.

In July 2024, one investor announced seven Standards For Residential Property Management (Management Standards). Management Standards offer the prospect of more stability for tenants. Management Standards cover:

    • tenant screening and selection
    • leasing practices
    • maintenance
    • landlord-tenant relations
    • tenants’ right to organize
    • housing stability
    • evictions
Who is this investor?

The investor is: the public pension fund(s) of New York City’s employees.

Why would the public pension fund(s) take the step of publicizing management standards?

Some of the people who belong to New York City’s pension funds are tenants. Their current and future well-being is related to the price and quality of their homes. Exorbitant rent increases, poor maintenance and vulnerability to evictions are not in their best interest.

Civic pension plan members are credible critics. They can ask embarrassing questions in public forums. Imagine the press if a well-regarded New York City employee lost their home and became a client of the City’s shelter system.

Currently, there are no industry standards1. The authors of the Management Standards linked below argue that the residential property management industry should step into this space.

What’s in it for business? The authors make the case that the Management Standards will help to avoid four risks to the residential property management industry2:

    • unstable revenues
    • unstable property values
    • new regulations governing property standards and tenant protection and
    • unexpected accidents and emergencies.
Where could this go?

This is one pension fund, but others could follow the New York City’s pension fund’s lead.

A news release announcing that the standards have been adopted has been posted by the New York City Comptroller: NYC Comptroller Lander and Pension Trustees Announce Adoption of First in the Nation Housing Standards for Private Real Estate Investment Portfolio

The Residential Property Management Standards are also available at the same site: Responsible Property Management Standards

Footnotes

  1. Even the gold standard for ethical business practice is silent on the issue of housing stability for tenants. Try: Ethical Business Runs Headlong Into An Ethical Dilemma – Tenant Wellbeing
  2. This argument has also been made in Canada, where media have called public pension funds to account for poor treatment of tenants. Try: How Changes In Investment Rules Can Enhance Housing Rights In Canada