Some homeowners in East New York, Brooklyn will be able to take advantage of a pilot program to convert their basements into apartments beginning on Monday. The law, called the Basement Apartment Conversion Pilot Program, seeks to bring basement apartments out from underground, and Mayor de Blasio and City Council say it will help fight gentrification and expand New York’s stock of affordable housing.
“We have to recognize that the people who built our neighborhoods have to have the ability to stay in them,” de Blasio stated at a press conference before signing the bill into law. “We believe that affordable housing can never be considered optional.”
Eligible homeowners will be able to apply for low- or no-interest loans to convert their basements into up-to-code apartments for as much as $120,000. Furthermore, the program will include technical help from the Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation for any construction projects necessary.
The point of the program is threefold, lawmakers at the press conference emphasized. Homeowners in gentrifying areas need the extra income a basement tenant could provide, and many lower-income tenants need the sort of cheaper housing that basement apartments would be. Lastly, as de Blasio admitted, some landlords will rent out their basements no matter its illegality, and the city’s pilot program will give tenants more legal protections, as well as safer living situations.
“There are thousands of basement apartments in New York City, but too many of them are illegal and unsafe,” de Blasio stated. “Renovating these units in East New York is absolutely crucial to the future of the city.”
According to Council Member Rafael Espinal, around 75 percent of the basements in East New York are already being rented illegally. Espinal hopes that the bill will “promote economic democracy for homeowners,” and allow them to “fight back against gentrification.”
The limited program only applies to homeowners who live in a specific region of Brooklyn, have three or fewer units in the building already and don’t make more than 65 percent more than the area’s median income, though de Blasio claimed that they will expand the program later on.
“We’ll assess the results, and then we can look at ways to expand this approach citywide,” de Blasio stated.
