The New York City Housing Authority keeps apartments off the rental market for more than seven years, according to an audit report released by the city comptroller’s office.
More than 2,300 apartments have created an estimated $8 million in lost rent as of September 2014.
“The fact that NYCHA has left 80 apartments vacant for over a decade, and another 161 apartments sitting empty for between three and ten years, is simply unacceptable,” Comptroller Scott Stringer said. “The more than 270,000 New Yorkers who are waiting for housing deserve much better treatment than that. It’s well past time for NYCHA to start getting it right.”
The audit also found that apartments remain vacant even after repairs have been made, many up to 288 days.
Some of the apartments listed as vacant have been used in other capacities by NYCHA.
The comptroller’s office wants NYCHA to speed up the repair process on the apartments and maintain and update a database on the units that become vacant immediately.
They will also work closely with NYCHA to make sure all audit recommendations are completed in a timely manner. NYCHA only agreed to nine out of the 10 audit recommendations made by the comptroller’s office.
