Slum Housing and Landlords’ Plight

Re “Housing Laws No Cure for Slums’ Ills,” July 20: The low-income housing industry in Los Angeles is in a very “sick” state. You are correct to point out the widespread problems of habitability with a substantial number of low-income housing units but stricter enforcement is not understanding the root problems of why these conditions persist.

First, let me say that the city has done a poor job in understanding the landlords’ plight in this whole mess and looks to ever increasing enforcement as the answer. It’s not working. The low-income housing industry is an unprofitable, liability-ridden, thankless business that most of the “good” guys are leaving. This leaves the “bad” guys, the slumlords to provide the low-income housing that is so sorely needed. I have a few suggestions for the city to focus on:

1. Tenants need to be made accountable just like landlords for certain conditions in their units. Housekeeping is a major issue in these matters.

2. The expenses of operating older low-income units are catastrophic. You start with the utility expenses led by the city’s sewer service charges. These expenses now consume between 20-25% of the gross income in some buildings. It’s impossible to maintain a building properly and pay the amount of expenses required for some of these buildings.

3. Focus more resources on the rehabilitation of older buildings. It is much more cost-effective to rehabilitate an older building than to build a new one.

GREGG SELTZER

Los Angeles

* Do you think it would be possible to pay for increased enforcement of building and health codes with the financing the city is considering for a new sports complex? Why build a new complex and increase the vermin population? Of course, in the case of a new sports complex the new rats will be the new landlords.

JOSEPH NERI

West Covina

* Your article is a pathetic view of our Health Department and the Department of Building and Safety and inspectors.

When slum buildings are roach-and-rat infested, in complete shambles (falling plaster, holes in the walls, rotting floors, bad plumbing, etc.), they should be condemned and razed. The landlords should not be allowed to defy and ignore notices to repair and clean up their buildings to make them habitable.

If that is not done, then I suggest we eliminate the Health Department and the Department of Building and Safety, since they are useless.

ANGELA MILLER

Los Angeles