Una investigación de City Limits reveló problemas importantes con el programa, que ayuda a unos 100.000 neoyorquinos a pagar una vivienda en edificios de toda la ciudad. A continuación te explicamos cómo saber si vives en uno de estos apartamentos y cómo obtener ayuda.

José Tolentino, de PBRA, habló con City Limits sobre sus problemas en el programa. (Adi Talwar/City Limits)

Este artículo se publicó originalmente en inglés el 15 de octubre. Traducido por Daniel Parra. Read the English version here.

La semana pasada, City Limits publicó una investigación en tres partes sobre el subsidio de Vales basados en proyectos de la ciudad de Nueva York, que ayuda a los residentes con bajos ingresos a pagar su vivienda.

Descubrimos que los inquilinos tenían dificultades para ponerse en contacto con los administradores de sus propiedades, conseguir que se realizaran las reparaciones necesarias y obligar a las agencias gubernamentales a tomarse en serio la aplicación de la ley.

Alrededor de 100.000 inquilinos se benefician del programa en la ciudad de Nueva York, en edificios de los cinco distritos. Muchos se enfrentan a los mismos retos. Pero en un sistema complicado de administradores de propiedades, agencias y subcontratistas, puede resultar difícil para los inquilinos orientarse.

Molly Rockett, abogada supervisora de Legal Services NYC que dirige su grupo de trabajo legal sobre la asistencia de vales basados en proyectos de la Sección 8, se reunió con City Limits para hablar sobre el programa y cómo los inquilinos pueden obtener ayuda. 

Esta entrevista ha sido editada y resumida para mayor claridad.

¿Qué es el programa de asistencia de vales basados en proyectos (PBRA por sus siglas en inglés)? 

Las viviendas PBRA son un tipo de viviendas de propiedad privada subvencionadas por el gobierno federal, en las que el gobierno paga a los propietarios privados para subvencionar el alquiler de los inquilinos con bajos ingresos. Los inquilinos de las viviendas PBRA suelen pagar alrededor de un tercio de sus ingresos para la renta, y el gobierno federal paga el resto directamente al propietario. Es similar a las viviendas de NYCHA, pero en lugar de ser propiedad de una agencia pública, los edificios PBRA son propiedad privada y están gestionados por privados. 

¿Cuáles son algunos de los problemas que tienen los inquilinos en el programa PBRA? 

Uno de los mayores retos es conseguir que los propietarios cumplan realmente las normas. Dado que los propietarios de la PBRA reciben cientos de miles de dólares en fondos federales, están obligados a cumplir unas normas estrictas destinadas a proteger a los inquilinos, como mantener apartamentos seguros y habitables y calcular con precisión la parte del alquiler que debe pagar cada inquilino en función de sus ingresos. 

En la práctica, muchos propietarios no cumplen con estas normas. A menudo no financian suficientemente sus oficinas de administración, dejando que un solo empleado se encargue del papeleo de cientos de inquilinos. Esto provoca retrasos, confusión, pérdida de documentos y fluctuaciones impredecibles en el costo del alquiler. Muchos inquilinos nos dicen que ni siquiera saben cuál es el importe real de su alquiler o cuándo se modificó por última vez. 

Los inquilinos también afirman sentirse impotentes y humillados cuando los administradores de la propiedad pierden habitualmente sus documentos confidenciales en el proceso de recertificación, lo que les obliga a volver a presentar la misma información una y otra vez.  

Y cuando los propietarios cometen errores, rara vez se les exige responsabilidad. No hay consecuencias reales cuando los errores de gestión cuestan dinero a los inquilinos, o su dignidad. Para muchos, lo más difícil de vivir en una vivienda PBRA es simplemente conseguir que el propietario cumpla la ley. 

¿Cómo puedo saber si vivo en un apartamento PBRA? 

Empiece por preguntarse: ¿el importe que pago por el alquiler depende de mis ingresos? Si tiene que presentar cada año información sobre sus ingresos, activos y prestaciones, y su alquiler varía en función de ello, es posible que se encuentre en un apartamento PBRA.

A continuación, piense a quién envía esa información. Si se la envía a una empresa de gestión privada (como C&C Management o Manhattan North Management) y esa empresa, y no una agencia municipal, le dice cuál será su alquiler, es probable que viva en un edificio de la PBRA. 

Si, por el contrario, envía toda la información a NYCHA, al Departamento de Vivienda, Conservación y Desarrollo (HPD por sus siglas en inglés) u otra agencia, es probable que tenga otro tipo de subsidio. Los apartamentos PBRA también se conocen como unidades de la Sección 8 basadas en proyectos. Siempre puede preguntar directamente al administrador de la propiedad a qué programa pertenece su apartamento, o ponerse en contacto con Legal Services NYC para confirmarlo.

Puede ponerse en contacto con la línea directa de LSNYC al 917-661-4500.

Lexington Gardens, un edificio del PBRA en la calle 107 de Manhattan.. (Adi Talwar/City Limits)

¿En qué se diferencia el programa PBRA de los vales de NYCHA y la Sección 8? 

La diferencia es que en el caso de los inquilinos de NYCHA y los inquilinos con vales, hay algún tipo de agencia gubernamental que se encarga de garantizar que el subsidio funcione realmente. Así, cuando NYCHA comete un error, por ejemplo, al calcular mal la parte del alquiler que debe pagar un inquilino, este puede presentar una reclamación contra NYCHA o interponer una demanda contra NYCHA. Sin embargo, en las viviendas PBRA, todo lo gestiona una empresa privada, sin que haya ninguna agencia gubernamental involucrada en las tareas diarias de gestión de los edificios o cálculo del alquiler.  

La asistencia de vales basados en proyectos de la Sección 8 es un edificio completo que acepta la subvención. Si el inquilino abandona el edificio, no puede llevarse la subvención consigo. Y en cuanto a los derechos de transferencia, el inquilino tiene derecho a solicitar transferencias, pero solo dentro del edificio propiedad de ese propietario específico, que podría ser un solo edificio.

¿Qué debo hacer si tengo un problema con mi apartamento? 

Lo mejor que puede hacer es empezar a organizarse con sus vecinos y crear una asociación de inquilinos. Hay organizadores de inquilinos en Community Voices Heard y otros lugares que le ayudarán a crear una asociación de inquilinos, y a partir de ahí, puede utilizar su poder colectivo para obligar a su arrendador a actuar y realizar cambios. Los abogados en Legal Services también podemos ser una herramienta utilizada por las asociaciones de inquilinos. Las asociaciones de inquilinos pueden contratarnos para redactar cartas de demanda, presentar quejas ante el gobierno federal e incluso demandar a su arrendador por no cumplir la ley.  

Puede intentar trabajar con el administrador de la propiedad o llamar a CGI [la agencia supervisora de la PBRA en Nueva York], pero cada uno tiene sus ventajas y sus inconvenientes. Si tiene un administrador de la propiedad amable, podría ser útil. Un administrador de la propiedad también podría ignorarle y malinterpretarle y no solucionar un problema o empeorarlo. Lo mismo ocurre con el CGI.

Dos de las cosas más importantes que pueden hacer los inquilinos para proteger sus derechos en el proceso son llevar un registro cuidadoso de cada vez que se ponen en contacto con el administrador de la propiedad, y hacerlo solo por escrito, y cuando envíen documentos al administrador de la propiedad, obtener un recibo que demuestre que los han entregado. Los administradores de propiedades dirán que nunca han sabido nada de usted, que nunca han recibido documentos suyos, y será su palabra contra la de ellos.

La información de contacto de su administrador de la propiedad y de CGI debe figurar en su edificio (normalmente en el vestíbulo o en la oficina de administración). Si no es así, intente ponerse en contacto con LSNYC.

¿Cuáles son mis derechos si recibo una notificación de desahucio? 

Se lo digo a todos los inquilinos con los que me encuentro: en la ciudad de Nueva York, solo una orden judicial puede obligar a un inquilino a abandonar su apartamento. Por lo tanto, si recibe una notificación de desalojo, no abandone el apartamento sin más; asegúrese de acudir al juzgado antes de la fecha límite indicada en la notificación para presentar su respuesta. Una respuesta es simplemente una lista de las defensas que puede tener en el caso; es su versión de los hechos. 

Tienes derecho a explicar al juez tu perspectiva sobre lo que está sucediendo, ya sea que tu alquiler se haya calculado incorrectamente, que no se haya procesado tu recertificación, que haya condiciones pendientes de reparación en tu apartamento o cualquier otra forma en que se hayan violado tus derechos. Algunas de estas cuestiones podrían ser defensas contra el desalojo que se te ha impuesto. Asegúrate de asistir a todas las citas judiciales para tener la oportunidad de hacer valer todos tus derechos y defensas en un caso de desalojo.

Para ponerse en contacto con el reportero de esta noticia, escriba a Patrick@citylimits.org. Para ponerse en contacto con la editora, escriba a Jeanmarie@citylimits.org.

The post Lo que necesita saber sobre: ¿Cómo obtener ayuda si vive en un apartamento con asistencia de vales basados en proyectos? appeared first on City Limits.

By GARY FIELDS, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The soldiers and airmen stood at the back of the black minivan, arming themselves — with black garbage bags and red-handled trash pickers — and headed for the park around the recreation center.

For the Washington, D.C., contingent of the National Guard deployed to the nation’s capital, it marked their 119th beautification project since the unit was called up in August as part of President Donald Trump’s federal law enforcement intervention. Their work has included cleaning graffiti in parks, picking up trash and refurbishing a recreation center. There are plans to help a school reading program in an often overlooked area of the city.

The hundreds of National Guard troops still deployed to the city — at times armed — have unnerved some residents, who see in them the manifestation of presidential overreach on law enforcement. And while there is deep mistrust over the motives of the overall deployment, others view the Guard in Washington, especially its local contingent’s focus on community improvement efforts, with a measure of approval.

FILE – With the White House in the distance, National Guard troops patrol the Mall as part of President Donald Trump’s order to impose federal law enforcement in the nation’s capital, in Washington, Aug. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

“I’m glad for the help,” said Sabir Abdul, 68, a resident who regularly cleans the trash and debris in the park around the Fort Stevens Recreation Center in Northwest D.C. “They have lives, but now they are here, helping us.”

The mixed feelings over the Guard deployment have forced local officials to strike a balance between opposing what they see as a flagrant violation of the city’s already limited autonomy and the acknowledgment that the district could use the help that at least the D.C. National Guard contingent has been providing.

A lawsuit filed by D.C.’s attorney general challenging the deployment — part of a wave of legal action in multiple cities facing their own federal law enforcement interventions — will be heard on Friday.

The Guard deployment in DC is among several around the country

Hundreds of National Guard troops have been in Washington, D.C., since Trump issued an emergency order in August, which launched what he said was a crime-fighting mission that also included the federal takeover of the local police department. The order expired last month, but the roughly 2,000 National Guard troops from D.C. and eight states remain in the city, with most contingents saying they plan to withdraw by the end of November.

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The troops have become a fixture of the city, patrolling metro stations and neighborhoods and supporting other federal law enforcement agencies in operations that have led to hundreds of arrests and sparked fear in many communities, especially among immigrants. Trump, a Republican, has praised the campaign as having reduced crime rates, which were already falling.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat whose city budget and laws are determined by Congress, has walked a fine line between appeasing Trump and pushing back on the deployment. She has acknowledged that the campaign has helped push down crime, while arguing that the out-of-state National Guard deployment has not been “an efficient use of those resources.”

In a recent brief filed in the D.C. legal case, Attorney General Brian Schwalb argued that the Guard units are operating “as a federal military police force.” The document also indicated that there were plans for the D.C. Guard to potentially remain in the city at least through next summer.

For some, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Grappling with mixed feelings about the Guard

In Ward 8, which is in the historic but underserved area of the district east of the Anacostia River, local officials have taken up an invitation from the D.C. Guard to help with community improvement despite their overall opposition to the presence of armed National Guard troops in the city.

Advisory neighborhood commission member Joseph Johnson said troops from the local Guard unit have been to his ward multiple times, “helping where we need help,” including cleaning around a school, as well as several areas in the Anacostia neighborhood. Community members have seen that “these are people just like them. They live here in our communities for the most part.”

Local officials have grappled over whether the help the local unit is offering can be separated from the Trump administration’s increasing threats to use uniformed troops on the streets of American cities. Some have zero tolerance, concerned that supporting even the local Guard’s beautification efforts can be seen as a tacit endorsement of Trump’s use of federal troops in supporting law enforcement activities.

“Trump is testing the system to see how far he can really go,” Johnson said.

The D.C. Guard contingent, which is controlled by the president, has been focused on quality of life issues in the city because many of the troops come from the communities they are now working in, said D.C. Guard interim commanding officer Brig. Gen. Leland Blanchard II.

Blanchard said the deployment would go on “until the president determines it’s time for us to go do something different.”

“We absolutely want to continue to partner with our own city, our own people here in the District of Columbia,” he told The Associated Press.

A city park embodies the tensions over the Guard

In the diverse Shepherd Park neighborhood, news that the Guard was arriving for cleaning efforts sparked a firestorm of opposition in community social media groups. Neighborhood commissioner Paula Edwards was forced to explain that no local official had invited them.

In this image provided by Andy Koester, National Guard soldiers and other law enforcement agencies work to get a cat, top right, out of a tree in Lincoln Park in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025. (Andy Koester via AP)

“We feel that their presence is frightening to many of our constituents,” Edwards said in an interview. She said the situation was complex because Guard members are following orders. She also said the D.C. Guard members were distinct from other state contingents because they are aware of the nuances and character of the city. She said public attitudes in her community ranged from “let the troops clean the park” to some who seek to shame them.

Edwards said under different circumstances she would be glad to see the Guard there, but “only after this deployment ends.”

Valencia Mohammed, who leads a local tenants’ association, said she had reached out to the Guard to request help to clean up. She simply wanted the park clean, including potentially dangerous items that could harm children. Mohammed, 74, said she usually cleaned the park, along with other older residents.

She said she believed local officials opposed the Guard’s cleanup efforts because they “did not want to seem supporting any efforts by Trump, even if it was good for the community.”

“I just wanted our park beautified,” she said, “which is something none of the commissioners have done.”

By JANIE HAR, Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday it is providing a base of operations for U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in the San Francisco area as part of its effort to support federal efforts to track down immigrants in the country illegally and provide border and maritime security.

A sign stands by the bridge that leads to Coast Guard Island Alameda in Oakland, Calif., Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

The San Francisco Chronicle, citing an anonymous source with knowledge of the operation, reported more than 100 CBP and other federal agents will begin arriving Thursday at the base in Alameda, a move immediately condemned by San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie and California Gov. Gavin Newsom. The two Democrats said the surge is meant to provoke violent protests.

CBP did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press. A statement provided to media by the Coast Guard said in part that “through a whole of government approach, we are leveraging our unique authorities and capabilities to detect, deter, and interdict illegal aliens, narco-terrorists, and individuals intent on terrorism or other hostile activity before they reach our border.”

Soon after the deployment was first reported, Lurie livestreamed a nine-minute statement from City Hall, flanked by other elected officials, and cautioned against giving federal officials working from “a playbook” any excuse to crack down. President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he plans to deploy National Guard troops to the city to quell crime, but his administration hasn’t offered a timeline for doing so.

“In cities across the country, masked immigration officials are deployed to use aggressive enforcement tactics that instill fear so people don’t feel safe going about their daily lives,” Lurie said. “These tactics are designed to incite backlash, chaos and violence, which are then used as an excuse to deploy military personnel.”

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As is his custom, Lurie did not refer to the president or address him by name.

Trump has deployed the Guard to Washington, D.C., and Memphis, Tennessee, to help fight what he says is rampant crime. Los Angeles was the first city where Trump deployed the Guard, arguing it was necessary to protect federal buildings and federal agents as protesters fought back against mass immigration arrests.

He has since said they are needed in Chicago and Portland, Oregon, as well, although lawsuits by Democratic officials in both cities have so far blocked troops from going out on city streets.

Trump recently renewed his musings about sending the Guard to San Francisco, saying in a Fox News interview Sunday that the city “was truly one of the great cities of the world” before it went “wrong” and “woke.”

His assertions of out-of-control crime in the city of roughly 830,000 has baffled local and state leaders who point to statistics showing that many crimes are at record lows.

Newsom’s administration said it would push back forcefully on any deployment, as it did when Trump first ordered the guard into Los Angeles against the governor’s wishes. California Attorney General Rob Bonta vowed to “be in court within hours, if not minutes” if there is a federal deployment, and San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu has promised the same.

At a news conference Wednesday, Newsom held up what he said was a lawsuit the state would file if Trump sends troops to San Francisco.

“We’re going to be fierce in terms of our response,” said Newsom, a former mayor of San Francisco. “This is the lawsuit that I will file within a nanosecond of any efforts to send the military to one of America’s great cities.”

The Coast Guard base in Alameda that is hosting the CBP agents is between Oakland and San Francisco, both sanctuary cities that do not cooperate with the federal government on civil immigration operations. A Homeland Security statement said the agency is “targeting the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens — including murderers, rapists, gang members, pedophiles, and terrorists.”

Lurie urged the public to protest peacefully. He said he had just signed an executive directive to coordinate the city’s response to a potential federal deployment and provide support for immigrants.

Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee issued a statement saying: “Real public safety comes from Oakland-based solutions, not federal military occupation.”

Associated Press writer Sophie Austin contributed from Sacramento, California

By RENATA BRITO and MATTHEW LEE, Associated Press

JERUSALEM (AP) — U.S. Vice President JD Vance criticized Thursday Israel’s parliament vote on West Bank annexation, saying it amounted to an “insult.” Vance’s scathing remark came as his visit wrapped up Thursday and after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he would now be traveling to Israel.

Vance’s words and the intense diplomacy indicate that U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration was intent on keeping up the momentum on the U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Speaking on the tarmac of Tel Aviv’s international airport before departing Israel, Vance said that if the Knesset vote was a “political stunt, then it is a very stupid political stunt.”

“I personally take some insult to it,” Vance said. “The policy of the Trump administration is that the West Bank will not be annexed by Israel.”

An intense US push toward peace

Earlier this week, Vance announced the opening of a civilian military coordination center in southern Israel where some 200 U.S. troops are working alongside the Israeli military and delegations from other countries planning the stabilization and reconstruction of Gaza.

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Rubio told journalists at Joint Base Andrews late Wednesday that he plans to visit the center and appoint a Foreign Service official to work alongside the top U.S. military commander in the Middle East, Vice Adm. Brad Cooper.

The U.S. is seeking support from other allies, especially Gulf Arab nations, to create an international stabilization force to be deployed to Gaza and train a Palestinian force.

“We’d like to see Palestinian police forces in Gaza that are not Hamas and that are going to do a good job, but those still have to be trained and equipped,” he said.

Rubio also criticized efforts by far-right politicians in the Israeli parliament who on Wednesday took the symbolic step of giving preliminary approval to a bill that would give Israel authority to annex the occupied West Bank — a move the U.S. opposes.

Trump “has made clear that’s not something we’d be supportive of right now, and we think it’s potentially threatening to the peace deal,” he said.

The bill passed in a 25-24 vote. It is unclear whether the bill has support to win a majority in the 120-seat parliament, and Netanyahu has tools to delay or defeat it.

Vance visits Holy Sepulcher

Meanwhile, Vance visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the sprawling 12th century basilica where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, died and rose again, in Jerusalem’s Old City.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance, center, tours The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP)

He is then expected to meet Israel’s Defense Minister, Israeli military leaders and other officials at the army’s headquarters in Tel Aviv.

On Wednesday, Vance sought to ease concerns that the Trump administration was dictating terms to its closest ally in the Middle East.

“We don’t want in Israel a vassal state, and that’s not what Israel is. We want a partnership, we want an ally,” Vance said, speaking beside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in response to a reporter’s question about whether Israel was becoming a “protectorate” of the U.S.

Netanyahu, who will meet with Rubio as well, expressed similar sentiments while acknowledging differences of opinion as they push forward the U.S.-proposed ceasefire agreement.

Israeli media referred to the nonstop parade of American officials visiting to ensure Israel holds up its side of the fragile ceasefire as “Bibi-sitting.” The term, utilizing Netanyahu’s nickname of Bibi, refers to an old campaign ad when Netanyahu positioned himself as the “Bibi-sitter” whom voters could trust with their kids.

Palestinians in Gaza in dire need of medical care

In the first medical evacuation since the ceasefire began on Oct. 10, the head of the World Health Organization said Thursday they had evacuated 41 critical patients and 145 companions out of the Gaza strip.

Palestinians walk trough the destruction caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive in Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza City, Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

In a statement posted to X, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called on nations to show solidarity and help some 15,000 patients who are still waiting for approval to receive medical care outside Gaza.

His calls were echoed by an official with the U.N. Population Fund who, on Wednesday, described the “sheer devastation” that he witnessed on his most recent travel to Gaza, saying that there is no such thing as a “normal birth in Gaza now.”

Andrew Saberton, an executive director at UNFPA, told reporters how difficult the agency’s work has become due to the lack of functioning or even standing health care facilities.

“I was not fully prepared for what I saw. One can’t be. The sheer extent of the devastation looked like the set of a dystopian film. Unfortunately, it is not fiction,” he said.

Saberton added that Palestinian women cannot get access to a hospital. “They often don’t even have access to a private space in a tent. We have stories of women giving birth actually in the rubble, beside the road,” he said.

Court hearing on journalists’ access to Gaza

Separately on Thursday, Israel’s Supreme Court held a hearing into whether to open the Gaza Strip to the international media and gave the state 30 days to present a new position in light of the new situation under the ceasefire.

Israel has blocked reporters from entering Gaza since the war erupted on Oct 7, 2023.

The Foreign Press Association, which represents dozens of international news organizations including The Associated Press, had asked the court to order the government to open the border.

In a statement after Thursday’s decision, the FPA expressed its “disappointment” and called the Israeli government’s position to deny journalists access “unacceptable.”

The court rejected a request from the FPA early in the war, due to objections by the government on security grounds. The group filed a second request for access in September 2024. The government has repeatedly delayed the case.

Palestinian journalists have covered the two-year war for international media. But like all Palestinians, they have been subject to tough restrictions on movement and shortages of food, repeatedly displaced and operated under great danger. Some 200 Palestinian journalists have been killed by Israeli fire, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

“It is time for Israel to lift the closure and let us do our work alongside our Palestinian colleagues,” said Tania Kraemer, chairperson of the FPA.

Lee reported from Washington. Josef Federman in Jerusalem and Farnoush Amiri in New York contributed to this report.