Bracing for Impact: Landlords Prepare for Strained Cash Flow and Outbreaks Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

While New York continues to reel in the wake of the COVID-19 tsunami, landlords are expecting a steep drop-off in rents early next month.

As many are working to negotiate with their lenders and wait for the government to step in during this unprecedented period, KMWB’s Craig Gambardella told The Real Deal, “This is a time where we put our differences aside… and work together to make sure the city stays strong and resilient.”

He continued, “If that means a community bank provides a landlord who has purchased a building a few years ago with a forbearance, that’s what I hope, as a New Yorker, the banks do.”

Along with the fears about cash flow, landlords are also struggling with what to do if one of their tenants tests positive for the virus.

Although they are already taking precautions to avoid an outbreak in their buildings, Gambardella says, “I don’t think that there is an affirmative obligation for landlords to advise their tenants that another resident was sick.”

However, “it wouldn’t be such a bad idea” to post a notice about a confirmed case if it would not cause unnecessary alarm.

Read the full Real Deal article here.