Effort to aid low-income tenants celebrates 30 years of success

Thirty years ago, the future didn't seem rosy for low-income tenants in Albany.

Roger Markovics, who was there, describes a series of pessimistic events that made life uneasy for tenants: swift disinvestment in city properties as residents moved to the suburbs, the red-lining of older neighborhoods by local banks, and an influx of slumlords who "bought, milked and abandoned" houses and apartments.

In that situation, Roger and his wife Maria -- members of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception -- formed the United Tenants of Albany (UTA). Thirty years later, UTA answers 5,000 calls per year through its drop-in center on Clinton Avenue and crisis hotline, and works to make life easier for low-income people who need housing.

On-going struggle

Two weapons the UTA uses to meet those goals are experience and allies. Banding together with related organizations is a necessity, said Mr. Markovics, because "the problems are overwhelming, and you need to be ten times your size. We have been effective, but we have to struggle every year to continue."

UTA has established ties with other civic and religious organizations that champion similar causes, such as the Albany Housing Coalition, the Affordable Housing Partnership and the Albany Community Land Trust:

* The Affordable Housing Partnership (AHP) was founded in 1986 as the UTA's reaction to prejudicial loans by some banks. Bankers, politicians and housing-related community organizations came together to provide low-cost loans and free advice to low- and moderate-income families.

"Bank regulators are now required to evaluate whether banks are meeting community credit needs," said Mr. Markovics. "Community groups have learned to put pressure on banks to re-invest in neighborhoods, and regulators have become more sophisticated as to what is a good form of reinvestment and what isn't. There has been a good response from local banks, and a lot of that response has gone through the Affordable Housing Partnership."

* The Capital District Community Loan Fund was established in 1985 with $82,000 donated by the Albany Diocese, local Presbyterian churches, Catholic religious orders and community groups.

The loan fund is "for socially responsible investors who are willing to take little or no return on their investment," Mr. Markovics said. "We've made over $10 million in loans, primarily in housing, and also to microentrepreneurs operating daycare and service programs."

* The Albany Housing Coalition operates transitional and permanent single-room occupancy buildings for homeless veterans and low-income tenants, and provides extensive counseling for first-time low-income homebuyers.

* The Albany Community Land Trust, Mr. Markovics explained, develops "affordable housing on community-controlled land, so that when people move in and out of these homes, resale is affordable. It cuts profit out of housing and means that housing is treated as homes rather than commodities."

The trust, which encompasses 40 buildings and nearly 60 units, is run by a board of directors and homebuyers, many of them low-income wage-earners.

Unlike salaried employees, who can count on receiving a certain amount in their paycheck each week, families and individuals cobble together one or more part-time jobs with hours that may vary from month to month.

Living in Albany becomes "a triple whammy," according to Mr. Markovics. "Housing's too expensive. You have low pay and irregular income. And you will have difficulty budgeting. You're up a creek."

More to do

Combating the problem of downstate speculators who are buying up Albany property, continuing to network and working with tenants in crisis on a day-to-day basis are some of Mr. Markovics' goals for the future.

UTA deals with a daily diet of housing issues of all kinds: from landlord conflicts and tenant evictions to no repairs or unfair treatment. UTA also arranges emergency assistance for families.

"The problems we had before are continuing today," he said. "The poor have never been prioritized for housing, and that's the state of it."

(Roger Markovics recommends that low-income people looking for a place to live should check local newspapers and listing services, such as the one provided by the Albany Housing Coalition, and cruise neighborhoods for unlisted properties. For information about his organization, call 436-8997.)

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