In many communities, illegal housing units have reached a critical mass, eroding neighborhood aesthetics, straining services, and turning parking into a frustrating ordeal. Many feel the situation is hopeless, with demand for housing simply overwhelming the city’s capacity to enforce housing and zoning codes. Cynics wonder if there isn’t a “don’t ask, don’t tell” attitude towards enforcement, with inaction on the part of local officials encouraged by fear of what vigorous enforcement would uncover. In the meantime, an illegal market thrives, and unplanned, unanticipated density crowds neighborhoods once considered among the city’s finest.
Click here (pdf) to read CHPC’s analysis of the quantity of illegal housing units in New York City and the impact these units have on their communities.