Doug Shimell

HAPCO Philadelphia’s lobbyist and watchdog at the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg is constantly tracking possible laws affecting rental and investment property owners.

Changes to PA flood insurance maps passed the State House and is headed to the PA Senate.  A housing anti-discrimination bill was also approved in the PA House and is being considered in the State Senate.

Bills pertaining to rent control, caps on rental application fees, and natural disaster evictions are all still alive.

As the City’s largest rental property owner advocacy group, HAPCO Philadelphia lets the media know what the eviction pause is doing to Mom and Pop rental owners.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has allocated $163-million for Philadelphia rental property owners who sustained damage from Ida’s flooding rains.

The grants are being disbursed through the City’s Community Development Block Grant Program and they want input from rental owners affected by Ida.

The City is asking rental owners to submit their input via email or in writing and by attending a virtual hearing.

Philadelphia City Council could take a lesson from this proposal for a luxury high-rise tower in Manhattan.

A third of the apartments planned for this tower in the World Trade Center complex will be designated for low-income renters.

Why can’t something like that be successful in Philly?

HAPCO Philadelphia rental and investment owners are the legal, licensed, “Good Guys” in the city’s rental market.

So, how is it some highly-paid city judges can own multiple unlicensed rental properties and have thousands of dollars in unpaid taxes and go unnoticed for years?

Sure, they paid up and got legal fast when the media come knocking!