Reply to absolutely absurd article on homeless encampment clearing on 17th st NW/Safeway

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[quote=Anonymous][quote]I also think SROs are probably a necessary part of the solution. [b]It would probably also require some amendment to the current landlord-tenant laws.[/b] One reason they worked in the distant past is that they had fairly strict rules for occupants. If you are going to be sharing a bathroom with a bunch of people on the hall, it's important that people not be leaving literal crap on the floor, shooting up there, plus you don't want people renting it just to use for prostitution, etc. So for them to work, it has to be fairly easy to evict people. Interestingly, right now, homeless shelters have VERY strict rules for occupants -- which is one reason why many people try to avoid going into shelters. For SROs to be a successful part of the solution, they need to fall somewhere between shelters and current landlord-tenant laws. My guess is that maybe 30-50% of the long-term homeless could be helped by a solution like SROs, particularly if there were social service agencies working in tandem with the SROs to make sure people had appropriate supports and if the rates could be low enough to be affordable to people currently on SSI (currently $771/month, so something under $600 would be ideal). So I guess the question is whether there's any private market for a SRO apartment that would be relatively small (under 50 units), renting for $600/month with no or limited requirement for a deposit/advance rent). 
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This.  As it is now, Georgetown lets its baby lawyers cut their teeth on defending tenants in landlord/tenant court.  So no sane landlord would operate an SRO in this city because crusading law students would make it impossible for them to efficiently evict residents who are making life hell for their fellow tenants.  So no, there's not a private market for this type of housing without significant protections being created for landlords.[/quote]

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