One thing I wish people knew was how much ableism is a factor in housing instability.

I learned today that an unhoused man was formerly a professional athlete from a well off family. Got injured, couldn’t play anymore. Mental health severely worsened. He’s been homeless for yrs. I spent years listening to tenants in my office. “So what happened?” And if I had to identify a pattern in all of the stories, one that sticks out is:

“I got injured on the job and couldn’t work anymore…”

“My parent died. I have depression. Everything seems weighty.”

I know that's right!

If I snagged a rent-stabilized apt 30 yrs ago for $250 and was then able to live my dream as a writer and photographer because I'm paying affordable rent, I'd be standing tall in front page news too.

I don't know her but I'm cheering her on. Someone after my interior decor heart....the apartment is cute too🥺

I’m seeing + hearing how the housing crisis is being used to stir up resentment about migrants.

The right wing anti-immigrant talking point used to be “stealing jobs.”

Now it has shifted to “NYC is spending millions on migrants while New Yorkers can’t afford rent.” And what’s more is it’s no longer just right wingers saying it, it’s blue voters, working class, also immigrants.

I’ve been doing this work 12 yrs and this is the first time I’m hearing these statements edge their way into housing circle.

Black women if you’re reading this, here’s what I learned that I wish someone told me when I started the workforce:

https://twitter.com/phil_lewis_/status/1745606127830663624

Put that damn cape down!

If there’s a problem, ask yourself “is this my actual job or is it someone else’s job to do?“

People LOVE to come to us to help solve their problems. But ask yourself: am I getting credit for this? A pay bump? (The answer is almost always no).

Well well well…

In a rare move, the city of Binghamton (NY) has BANNED a landlord from owning or managing property there for the next 15 years. And then SEIZED 26 of his properties.

Why?

Code violations (aka being a slumlord). This needs to be universal. Let’s talk about what the city did right:

When the landlord didn’t show up to housing court, the city ARRESTED him.

Then said you can’t own private property here AND be a slumlord. 15 yrs banned.

Finally, the mayor released a statement: “landlords: f*ck around + find out.”

“I am my parent’s retirement plan.”

I want to put words to a part of the housing crisis I see playing out:

Many of our parents + grandparents weren’t able to get jobs w/ traditional retirement plans (due to discrimination) and as such, rely on their children for housing/care. For example, many women in my family worked as maids for years.

There was no 401k retirement plan.

And even if there was, they barely made enough to make ends meet. So many have this story—and when their children secure jobs with much higher salaries, buy their first house…

There’s been a massive apartment building fire in Atlanta.

Two tenants are now going viral because authorities + media are blaming them—

and as someone who has litigated many apt fire cases, I want you to know why that narrative is dangerous and premature….

https://twitter.com/billyheathfox5/status/1723380774773158227

Whenever there’s a massive fire that spreads quickly and damages a large building, the first question should always be:

How was the fire able to spread so quickly?

And in many cases, it’s because the building was not up to code.

Wow!

If you’re from Brooklyn and still live here, you can SEE the gentrification.

But to have it laid out in graphs + charts in the Bklyn Borough President’s report is striking.

NYC is the 7th most segregated U.S. city. And it’s gotten worse in Brooklyn. This map could be a rainbow sprinkle.

Instead it shows that New York is very segregated by race.

Those blue dots are white residents. The blue dots are prominent in the most gentrified areas of Brooklyn in the last 3 decades—Williamsburg, Bushwick, Greenpoint, Brooklyn Heights

Did y’all hear?

NYC landlords aren’t renting out their rent stabilized apartments.

They’re against rent stabilization + claim regulated rent stifles their profits—so they’re “protesting” by letting apts sit empty than rent them out.

13,000 of them. In a housing crisis. gothamist.com/news/more-than…

Do your parents own a home?

My advice to you, if they do, is to make sure that’s a consistent conversation topic with them.

I cannot emphasize enough how well-trained these scammers are with elderly homeowners: from deed theft to aggressive buying tactics. In a lot of families, parents may not discuss their financial business w/ their children.

This secrecy is honestly just prevalent in all types of housing matters.

I see this in my daily work. Mom’s getting evicted + doesn’t want to provide lawyer children as emergency contact

So I’m watching this City Council hearing on a bill to limit facial recognition technology in NYC…

(ofc the support for the bill is b/c the tech can lead to racial profiling).

Y’all…the president of the bodega association came to testify they want FCT in their stores 😩 No seriously this hearing went on for FIVE hours and he testified around hour 3.

Y’all I couldn’t believe it. When I get my beccineggncheese I’m gonna have to worry abt store having my face scan??

When he said “this all started in 2020 when they disrespected the police…”, me:

Oh shit.

Council members and tenants just burnished the stage to demand a rent decrease! Bumrushed **

Hi 👋🏾

I’m getting a ton of DMs from tenants facing eviction.

There are so many that I can’t keep up or respond to all. I’m sorry you’re experiencing this—I know it’s scary.

Here are some resources and insight for NYC tenants 🧵 The first tip is if you have a court case, try to get a free lawyer.

Here’s the link with info.

There are many legal service orgs. But we’re all stretched at capacity so it’s hard to get one. For a better chance, I would suggest emailing OCJ (in link)

nyc.gov/site/hra/help/…

My fellow fans of interior decor…

I stopped in a Brooklyn plant/furniture store and saw this mid-century modern beauty of a couch.

Let’s marvel at it together because omg??? And since we’re all gathered here today….this is my new obsession.

Contrasting dark colored wall paper with light furniture and tiles, use of brass for planters and cabinet handles. Oh! Somebody say amen! 😍😂

I’ve been a tenants’ rights attorney for over a decade and I want to shed some light on what happens to people when they’re facing eviction. Any tenant attorney will tell you that many tenants are in shock.

“I’ve been living here for 10 years. Got along w/ the landlord.”

And we have to tell them it doesn’t matter. They’re trying to evict you. We spend a lot of time getting them in the headspace to fight back

Colorism is prevalent in the workplace but there often isn’t enough data about it.

That’s changing.

Recently Catalyst published a study which found that women with darker skin tones are more likely to experience racism in the workplace compared to women with lighter skin tones “An important finding in the research was the prevalence of colorism and texturism in the workplace. Colorism and texturism don’t receive enough conversation within DEI discussions.”

forbes.com/sites/janicega…

Oh I’ve been waiting to talk about this:

111K of 112K U.S. real estate development companies are white owned.

Of 383 top-tier developers that generate more than $50 million annually, one is Latino; none is Black
nytimes.com/2023/03/03/rea… So I’ve been wanting to talk about it because I hear from a lot of black folks who seek to navigate this system by building equity.

And we always hear “the quickest way is through real estate”.

The NYC Council is considering a law to prohibit fatphobia in housing + the workplace.

Yesterday the council heard testimony on it.

It lasted 1.5 hours and was very interesting. Activists, doctors, everyday New Yorkers testified. Here’s what they said… Endocrinologist testified that:

Weight stigma causes people to avoid going to the doctor and having preventative health screenings.

After writing Professionalism as a Racial Construct, I’ve been leading trainings to transform workplaces.

Recently, I spoke with students at the University of North Carolina’s Business School and I’m going to tell you what I told them:

The workplace as we know it has changed🧵 I talk to ceo, deans, lawyers, professors, heads of offices and have developed a birds eye view of the workplace today and where it’s headed.

Here are some cultural shifts I’ve observed that you should know about.

Astoria, Queens has a storied history with real estate developers. In fact the neighborhood got its name after trying to woo mogul John Jacob Astor to invest in it.

This is a 🧵 about the recently approved Innovation Qns—one of the largest housing projects Queens has seen Innovation Qns is a mega development spanning five blocks of mostly housing.

At the time it came before the City Planning Commission, the proposed idea was 2800 residential units with 25% of them being permanently affordable (the rest market rate).

Things changed.

This house has been dubbed the “Gracie Mansion” of Woodlawn, Bronx.

It’s 4 bdrm, 6 bathroom with a garage, basement, backyard patio.

Just look at the details🤌🏾 Look at that ceiling!😩😍

Take a wild guess: how much is the asking price for this Bronx beauty? I just really love how the living room is completely separate and apart from the dining room, which is on the other side.