Summit Housing appeals preliminary assessments for 10 Syracuse low‑income apartment buildings, cites preservation obstacles after state tax‑credit change

The owner of a portfolio of low‑income multifamily properties asked the Syracuse City Board of Assessment Review on March 3 to reduce tentative 2025 assessments for ten buildings, saying federal subsidy rules and state policy changes have limited rents and delayed planned renovations.

The petitioner, Chris Sluschke, representing Summit Housing Associates LLC and Springtide Housing, told the board the properties operate under project‑based Section 8 Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) contracts that cap rent increases to about 1.9–2.1% annually and prevent the owner from charging market rents. "We are not allowed as some, you know, Section 8 contracts do to compare ourselves against the market," Sluschke said. He said the caps, combined with deferred maintenance, have left several buildings operating "underwater for the past at least three years."

Sluschke and board members discussed five properties acquired as a package in 2021 for about $4,000,000 and five additional low‑income housing (LIH) properties. The petition…