KINGSTON, N.Y. – The city and Ulster County have provided financial support to a low-income housing provider to assist landlords with apartment repairs if they promise to keep rents stable for a period of time, according to Mayor Steve Noble and Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger.
The mayor said Tuesday that the city and Ulster County will support RUPCO’s administering of the $1.885 million through the Affordable Rental Upgrade Program as part of the Landlord Ambassador Program.
In a statement, Noble’s office said the funding is “to provide financial assistance to landlords to improve the conditions of rental units in exchange for keeping rents stabilized for low-income tenants.”
The City of Kingston allocated $350,000 in ARPA funding to support this program, which will be awarded specifically to Kingston-based rental units, the statement said. The funding allocated to ARUP for this program is part of the $4.6 million Kingston has earmarked for housing action projects.
“We are pleased to help fund this important effort to provide safe and comfortable housing for all and to ensure that we continue to support the creation of new affordable housing in our community,” Noble said in a statement. “We have successfully worked with RUPCO on a previous round of this program, and I want to thank RUPCO for continuing to facilitate this vital program. I look forward to seeing this funding directly improve more local apartment units for Kingston tenants.”
Metzger said that the program is beneficial on multiple fronts.
“This new incentive-based program will help small landlords make investments that improve safety and comfort and reduce tenants’ utility bills while committing them to keeping rents affordable for the next five to seven years,” Metzger said in a statement.
However, Rich Lanzarone, executive director of the Hudson Valley Property Owners Association, said landlords are not likely to participate.
“The program’s mandated ‘Fair Market Rents’ are so far below actual market rents that few property owners are likely to enter the program,” Lanzarone said.
“The program is positive recognition that preservation of and investment in the existing housing stock is critical to providing affordable housing options,” Lanzarone said. “This is the exact opposite of the destructive policy of Kingston’s rent control efforts to reduce rents by 15% for the very same apartments, driving small landlords into bankruptcy, leading to the rapid deterioration of living conditions for rent control tenants.”
The program is open to landlords who own eight or fewer legal residential rental units in Ulster County. Funding may be used for repairs that address code violations, items that can lead to code violations, health and safety issues, heating, electrical, plumbing, structural issues, roofing, windows, siding, carpentry, accessibility, and energy efficiency upgrades. Beautification and cosmetic repairs are not eligible expenses.
“In exchange, the landlord must agree to rent the units to households at or below specified income levels and keep the monthly rental amounts stabilized at an affordable rate for a period of 5-7 years, based on the funding level,” the statement said.
Maximum grant awards are:
• $25,000 per unit for units that house tenants with household gross income at or below 60% of the area median income limit for Ulster County, as calculated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, based on household size (to a maximum of $50,000 per building).
• $15,000 per unit for units that house tenants with household gross incomes between 60% and 80% of the area median income limit for Ulster County as calculated by HUD based on household size (to a maximum of $30,000 per building).
“Together, we’re making essential repairs to their units and helping stabilize rents, fostering a stronger, more vibrant community for all,” said Faith Moore, senior vice president of operations and strategy at RUPCO, in a prepared statement. “This collaboration embodies our unwavering commitment to affordable housing and the prosperity of our community.”
The application deadline is December 1, 2023. More details can be found at