When a landlord lives in your building, it can mean more
attention—both good and bad
In a city as vast as New York, rental buildings range from the basement unit in
a one-family home to sprawling projects like Brooklyn’s Starrett City and the
East Side’s Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town. In the former, the tenant
lives right underneath the landlord; in the latter, the landlord is a largely
anonymous company.
In between, there are thousands of multiunit dwellings where
the landlord lives alongside tenants. Sometimes, the situation can degenerate
into a legal war, as in the case of Alistair Economakis, who is trying to
convert his East Village building into a home for his family.
More often, tenants and landlord find a modus operandi. Roberto Gonzalez, a
broker with Bond New York, can readily cite the potential pitfalls in such a
situation, but overall, he believes that on-site landlords represent a plus for
tenants.
“It’s not necessary to live in a building to be an attentive landlord,” he says.
“But if you live there, you’re going to be extremely attentive to maintenance.”
True, if the hot water isn’t working, the landlord suffers equally with his
tenants; however, it also means a lot less tolerance for loud music or all-night
parties.
In places like Williamsburg and the East Village, where young people go after
college, they’re not used to living in close proximity to neighbors,” Gonzalez
observes. “If you want to be a landlord who just gets the checks, living in a
building like that can be a recipe for disaster.”
Toshi Chan owns a pair of twin buildings in Williamsburg and lives in the
penthouse of one of them. He screens applicants to ensure that they aren’t
noisy; he also insists on tenants hiring a security guard for large parties and
doesn’t allow smoking anywhere. But he offers his tenants the services of his
own assistant as a concierge to facilitate any problems.
The trade-off seems to work. “Some landlords wouldn’t want to be on premises
because they’re bothered all the time,” he says. “This is my home. I want to be
living with the kind of people I enjoy. The tenants I have are fortunate because
it means more attention to services.”
Still, he jokes, “Check in with me in 10 or 15 years, in case I change my mind.”
