Being a successful landlord in Youngstown isn’t easy, and here are some of the reasons

EDITOR:

I am writing this letter in regard to Vindicator articles over the last month or so pertaining to rental properties in Youngstown. I agree with Gary M. Crim’s statement that most “landlords are an asset to the city” and “are victims of crime, not the cause of it.”

My husband and I are also landlords of some property in Youngstown. We have been for about 10 years. Many of our units are unoccupied because it is hard to find good tenants who want to live in those neighborhoods. Some of the units sit empty because the previous tenants have made them unlivable and it takes a lot of time and money to fix them. You can’t turn the damage into your insurance because the insurance companies will drop you, and it’s hard to find an insurance company that even wants to insure them. In these tough times, money is tight, and so we try to do as much as we can with the money available. Currently, our own home sits unfinished so that our dream of becoming successful landlords can be realized.

Aside from the expense from the vandalism we incur by some of our tenants, we also face problems with the people in the neighborhoods who are unwilling to call the police or get involved in any way when an empty unit is being vandalized by others.

Another problem we face is a lawful practice carried out by the Youngstown Water Department. If you have a tenant who pays their own water, meaning the water account is in their name, and the tenant does not pay their bill for months, then moves out, that water bill comes back on the landlord. Naturally, having good credit, the landlord pays the bill, which allows the now ex-tenant the freedom to rent somewhere else and open a new account. You can take them to small claims and win, but since they don’t own anything, there is no way to collect. Maybe it is unconstitutional to be forced to pay a debt incurred by someone else, so you could probably fight that in court. But then again is the issue of no way to collect and also the issue of more time and money that just isn’t there.

Four or five years ago, we bought a building for a good price that needed a lot of work. We installed some new frames and 12 brand new steel doors. Within a couple months time, someone had busted in the basement doors, apparently to dig through the walls looking for copper piping. Shortly after, someone walked off with two of the steel doors. The police told my husband that from time to time they actually see people walking with steel doors but that they are not allowed to stop them because the police would be violating their civil liberties. What about my rights? Do they think these people walked from Home Depot or Lowes with brand new steel doors over their heads? It is simply ridiculous and infuriating.

To make matters worse, my husband then boarded up the doors and windows to keep vandals from further damaging the property; shortly after we received a demolition notice on that property. Did the person who put it on the demo list not realize there was new security lights around the were or that work was being done with the porches and downspouts? We also had new gas lines put in which couldn’t be seen because they’re under ground.

I saw Mayor Jay Williams speak on the community channel briefly and before he was mayor. I was motivated by what I heard in his Youngstown 2010 speech. I wanted to be a part of the solution not a part of the problem. I have never met Mayor Williams but I believe he is doing a great job and have seen many positive changes. I have to believe that these positive changes will continue and that more people will start to take pride in where they live and perhaps we will get to a place where everyone involved — landlords, tenants, and homeowners — will be proud to say they are a part of Youngstown.

G.M. WHITFIELD

Youngstown