“No C of O, No Evictions” and “Good Cause Eviction Protections”

No one should ever be evicted for merely insisting their landlord install smoke detectors. Yet that is the grim reality faced by most Rochester tenants today.

The reason is as simple as it is unjust—the majority of landlords in Rochester can evict their tenants for no reason (or any reason) at all. Those who rent their homes on a monthly basis are particularly vulnerable, as they can be evicted at any time.

The predictable result is that tenants cannot organize to better their living conditions or demand landlords make their homes safe to live in. Sure, tenants can technically organize, but landlords can avoid having to pay for repairs by evicting anyone who dares complain. BIPOC are disproportionately affected by this severe power imbalance. 

These tenants therefore suffer slum conditions while housing quality is driven down across Rochester. And even if tenants stay silent there’s no guarantee they won’t be displaced by investors who can buy their building, evict everyone, and raise the rent by as high as 40%.

What makes the situation particularly galling is that hundreds of landlords currently rent out buildings without a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O). This is illegal, but there is no adequate enforcement process. Tenants, then, must live in fear of being evicted from homes their landlords not only fail to maintain but should not be able to rent out in the first place.

This cannot continue. That is why the City-Wide Tenants’ Union is fighting to pass two urgently needed laws—No C of O, No Eviction and Good Cause Eviction Protections.

No C of O, No Eviction would prohibit landlords from starting an eviction without first producing a valid C of O. This would incentive landlords to make needed repairs, which would improve the quality of housing in low income neighborhoods throughout the city. Good Cause would further protect tenants by requiring a legitimate reason for evicting anyone and providing tenants with a right to renew their lease. It would also prevent landlords from pushing tenants out through extortionist and immoral rent increases. Currently only 20% of Rochester tenants enjoy Good Cause protections—this law would extend these protections to more than 98% of tenants, who could organize without fear of being punished by landlords acting with impunity.

You can learn more about the City-Wide Tenants’ Union Stabilize Rochester campaign here.