The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-07-13
lora Suason With Punch Brings Rent Profieers to Book
Curb
Their Greed In
Finding Health.
Police, Fire and
9th er City De
partments milne
up Against Them

breaks loose the next. The proceed
ings are charged with much that -
pathetic and much that 10 humorous.
Outlines there is grim tragedy In the
pitiful stories Of domestic struggles TO
meet the increased costs Of living.
More than one landlord who started
| out with the intention Of getting rich
in a hurry has thrown up his hands
as the sad tales got under his skin
and agreed to compromise on any
thing that the committee considered
fair.
| Medicine for the Uppish.
After the tenants have told about
various rent increases in a given num-
Der of months and enumerate a list OF
violations" for which the landlord
could be held responsible the landlord
| gets his innings. sometimes he says
the committee hasn't any authority"
| and it's none of its business how
much he charges. The mediator says
Tut tut" or something like that, and
gives a little heart to heart talk about
humanitarianism and how anxious the
committee Is that everybody shall be
contented and happy. Then II 1t Is
necessary the mediator goes further
and declares that II the landlord in
sists on feeling that way about it he
needn't be at all surprised II sundry
city departments may compel him to
spend much more than his rental in
creases will amount to in doing things
he ought to have done long ago.
1t Is only an out and out rent prof.
,r,l.A All a. III.
everybody agrees that 1t isn't wrong
to use this kind Of moral suasion on a
type of man who insists upon his right
to make 'eDn pay the last dollar he
can get" And the records show that
this kind Of moral suasion generally
works. At any rate, many landlords
have left headquarters with a whole
some idea that the big city of New
York will catch 'em If they don't
watch out"
At the beginning of the committees
activities, tenants strikes were COM
mon and tenants unions were much in
evidence. The committee refused to
recognize the union and in Browns
vile, in particular, where Socialist
tenants were terrorizing the owners OF
properties and were refusing to pay
ally TcuI WUdlcNct, d6ISc-
ments between individual tenants and
individual landlords put a sad crimp
!, in the union scheme as applied to
! tenement occupancy.
How the "Leastero Works.
The work Of the Mayors commit
tee has disclosed the existence of q
new type of money grabber. the pro-
fessional lessee of apartment houses.
: These lessees are widely known as
"leasters," the least of all. The great
bulk of rent profiteering is being
. charged up against them. There is a
} small army Of "leasters" intrenched
in the. greater city. They speculate,
not in real estate. but in rents. a
"leaster" leases an apartment house
for a. year or a period of years. He
obligates himself to pay, say $4,000,
the net annual income from the rents.
This method of collecting rents saves
/ lot Of annoyance and worry to the
man who owns the house, as a land
: lord isn't as popular to-day as lie
I once was. After getting possession OF
: the property, the "leaster' boosts
, rents all along the line in order to
. get n big return on his investment.
which Is & promise to pay the lessor
e $1,000. In many cases the boost on
I house. formerly producing $4,000
t net amounted to $4,000, making a
total return of $500.
t Specializing in rents has become q
highly specialized business and there
| are many cases in the committees card
). index where a "leaster." after jack
, ing up rents, subleased the building
to another and the newcomer pro-
] ceeded to do a little lacking up on his
own hook.
The investigators have learned that
many willy owners of apartment houses
made rent increases just before pass
l ing the property over to the lessee. They
. did this in order to make the lease
: attractive to the lessee. In many In
A stances the lessee didn't find out that
E the jump In rents was a recent one
J, until he attempted to make his first
collection Of lacked up rents.
, 10 Per Cent. Considered Fair.
4 Chairman Hirsch says there Is
grave reason to suspect a man OF
profiteering If he gets more than 10
per cent. return on what he actually
mas invested after all his fixed and
running charges have been deducted
from his total rent receipts. Members
; Of the committee are inclined to take
J his view OF IT.
, I'VE believe the work Of the COM
mittee to be most practical" Mr..
Hirsch said. I'VE are trying TO
preach the Golden Rule to rich and
poor alike. Every person has certain
rights and these rights must be taken
into consideration.
THE trouble to-day is the poor man
} has a feeling he cannot get his rights,
A thing seems wrong to him. He has
70 money and Is unable to find out
from lawyer whether his rights have
or have not been invaded. II he goes
to a District Attorney, he is told that
= no law actually has been violated.
; and. therefore, nothing can be done,
) The poor mans troubles may be big
or little, but they seem mighty big TO
5 him. He is unable to get help and
tegins to brood. Thus the spirit o.
unrest Is stirred within him. This has
} been demonstrated in oun housing
situation.
l II believe the spirit OF unrest can
be eliminated, not by the whip, or by
deportation. or by prison, but by the
l Golden Rule. Bolshevism would be
s put down In this country II every