Supreme Court Declines to Hear Challenge to Rent Laws

Owners of New York City apartments governed by rent laws were disappointed this week when the Supreme Court refused to hear a case brought by James D. Harmon Jr. and Jeanne Harmon, who own a five-story brownstone on the Upper West Side. In their lawsuit, which was filed in 2008, the Harmons said three of their six apartments are rent stabilized and that tenants in those apartments pay about 60 percent below market rent, resulting in an unconstitutional taking of their property. Nearly half of the city’s 2.2 million rentals are covered by rent regulations.

The U.S. economy slowed in the first quarter, according to Commerce Department estimates. Real GDP — the output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States — increased at an annual rate of 2.2 percent in the first quarter of 2012 (from the fourth quarter to the first quarter). In the fourth quarter of 2011, real GDP increased 3.0 percent. The first quarter saw a slowdown private inventory investment and a downturn in nonresidential fixed investment, which was partly offset by increases in personal consumption and exports.

The Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee pledged to maintain low interest rates through late 2014. The Fed has held short-term interest rates near zero since late 2008, and sought to further reduce long-term rates by buying Treasuries. The committee said it expects economic growth to “remain moderate over coming quarters and then to pick up gradually,” and that “the unemployment rate will decline gradually.”

Some housing experts are beginning to believe that that the housing market has hit bottom. The National Association of Realtors reported that contracts to buy previously owned homes rose 12.8 percent in March 2012 compared to March 2011, the highest level in about two years, and up 4.1 percent from February. Housing inventory fell in 28 markets tracked by the Wall Street Journal, and the lack of supply is prompting bidding wars in some markets. New home sales are up 16 percent this year compared to 2011, and in March the inventory of new homes fell to the lowest level since 1963 when record keeping began.

Meanwhile, the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices for February 2012 showed annual declines of 3.6 percent and 3.5 percent for the 10- and 20-City Composites, respectively. In the New York metro area, home prices in February 2012 fell 3 percent in February 2012 compared to February 2011.

New York City is seeking to reduce carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2030 by increasing the energy efficiency of buildings, which produce three-quarters of the city’s carbon emissions. City Limits profiled efforts taken by the Women’s Housing and Economic Development Corporation (WHEDco) to introduce energy efficient measures in its buildings, including Intervale Green, a new green building in the Crotona East section of The Bronx. In addition, LISC and Enterprise Community Partners have invested $18 million in retrofitting 2,226 affordable apartments in Brooklyn, The Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens.