Here ya go! Gift link : https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/31/realestate/first-time-home-buyer-retirement.html
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I read that article yesterday! Could not believe about the 80 & 81 year old couple who gave up their rent-controlled apt after 50 years to move to a place that requires what has already been months of renovation.
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Yeah, they were interesting, but they had no kids so are living for only themselves at this point, and I guess this is what makes them happy. And they can afford it, it seems.
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Oh, absolutely! The torture of NYC renovation would deter me.
They finally got on the YOLO wagon. 
Did they give up the apartment or were they forced to? Iām not familiar with how such rents work in NYC, but wouldnāt there be an ongoing income/assets requirement? This couple amassed a small RE empire while living in this subsidized place and had saved $1.9M for their dream condo. Not judging, just curious.
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It does seem odd that someone can live in a rent controlled apartment for so many years. You would think there would be income/asset requirements, but maybe thatās only to get the apartment in the first place. Or maybe they have a low income and assets arenāt considered? Seems unethical to stay in a rent controlled apartment for so long, unless you really are impoverished. Iāve heard people stay in those places forever, never moving, because they donāt want to give up such a deal. That doesnāt seem like the intent of rent controlled apartments, to give certain families a massive discount for life, when there are other people who are needier.
And I am judging!
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This is why rent control is generally a failure as public policy. It does not benefit those who need it, and it puts the burden on a very small number of people for what is allegedly a broader societal benefit. It generally lowers tax revenues and leads to decaying housing stock, and inhibits new housing creation.
We voted it out via public referendum 20 years ago, and like a bad penny it has resurfaced as a few cities are trying to reimplement it.
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RC and RS in NYC do not require any sort of annual true-up or threshold of income (or wealth) test in order to stay. Once you secure one of these apartments, youāre in. Often for life (and in some cases able to pass the lease to kids, believe it or not).
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What a scam. I canāt believe that anyone would support that. Seems much easier and more effective to give out housing vouchers based upon need. There are probably plenty of retired folks who would love to stay in NYC, but can no longer afford it. My son has a friend whose mom has a rent controlled apartment in Greenwich Village, and sheāll never leave.
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The politics of rent and eviction control get dominated by incumbent tenants and landlords, so it is not surprising that any resulting policies favor the incumbents over new entrants (whether they are tenant-favorable or landlord-favorable). Hence, in places where tenants are powerful enough to get tenant-favorable policies like stricter rent and eviction control enacted, the policies often favor incumbent tenants, often to the detriment of those tenants attempting to enter the market.
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Thatās what happens when you mess with The Invisible Hand!
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Not exactly.
Here is a weird thing that I just experienced, and Iām guessing that itās because I am retired now. Iāve never had a hassle applying for credit cards, usually they approve, sometimes they donāt. Itās pretty straightforward, never been questioned for additional details. Applied at the local credit union for this great 0% interest/0 transfer fees card, and they were very suspicious about my income. They asked me to call them for clarification not once, but twice, where they asked the same questions. The second guy asked if I could prove my income via paperwork (yes, I can). It was kind of weird, and I wanted to say jeez, itās just a dang credit card, you can see my credit, even if you believe Iām lying about my income. Itās not like the max limit is even that high. My other credit union gave us an awful time trying to get a HELOC after retirement, but the limit is far higher. Itās like they couldnāt consider pension as an actual income, and distributions from our 401Kās.
Depends on the bank. In one of the banks I applied HELOC, they wanted to see my assets since my income was low. After that, no fuss, approved the loan within days. In another, they rejected it al together citing lack of income.
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?
Yes, exactly.
RC tenants can pass apartments to kids or grandkids if theyāve lived there long enough and recently. And for both RC and RS there are no income requirements, restrictions, or checks. For other types of low income housing, there are, but I did not reference those programs.
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I had something similar, when I made app to a new CU for a car loan. (I find it easier to put down a large deposit and borrow for the balance to pay it off quickly.). I had just retired so income was now āzeroā. I told the neemphasized textw rep that I had a balance on my brokerage account and he asked me to send a redacted copy of a recent statement, and that worked for the credit committee.
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For some reason, this felt strange to me. Like they thought I should have applied with my husband and then they would have believed me (we get separate cards because if itās a good deal then heāll get one too). Or if I had claimed less in income it would have been believable. I claimed a high distribution from my 401K because thatās what we took out to purchase a property. Just never had to explain a thing when I was employed.
Iāve found that credit unions usually needed more information and were more thorough than larger banks.
We have a credit union credit card with a small limit. To up our limit we had to reapply for a CC we have had for literally 30 years at that point. A car loan? Long application and more questions.
National bank cc, I can ask for a limit increase through the app. Apply for a car loan instantly.
We donāt use the credit union credit card anymore because paying the bill meant writing a check to a savings account at that bank and then transferring money to pay the credit card. My Costco card I can pay from the checking account at the bank Iāve been with for the last 30 years.
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When we started retirement planning, we talked about credit scores etc with the financial advisor (he suggested Credit Karma, free website). The we chatted about whether it would ever be important again. In our case we probably wonāt do any more loans (yay!), but there are some discounts on insurance etc for high score.
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Maybe that is the issue, that itās a credit union. Weāve had other delays with a different credit union, even when we were employed. Every possible piece of paper required for every single loan. And submit it twice. It took 4-5 months to get our HELOC approved through our credit union, and they had to send it to the executive board twice for exemptions to their policies. Even though our credit was fine, we were employed, had multiple paid off loans with them over several years, had no debt except for our mortgage, and had home equity of around 90% of the value of our home. They should hope we defaulted!
Well, the credit union just approved my credit card, and gave me the max limit, so Iām no longer complaining. I was getting scared that we couldnāt get credit after retiring.
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