Slumlord Millionaire

Rents have gone up an average of 30% in the past five years in the United States – as of April 2024, the average rent in Manhattan was almost $5,000 a month. Some landlords are eager to get rid of long-term tenants and use various tactics including cutting off heat and gas, refusing to make repairs and ignoring vermin infestations.

In New York City’s most quickly gentrifying neighborhoods, a group of fearless residents, activists and nonprofit attorneys fight corrupt landlords and developers for the basic human right to a home. Each story is a David vs. Goliath-type battle clearly exposing how interconnected systems give power to the real estate industry and contribute to the human toll of gentrification.

Manhattan Chinatown has been fighting gentrification for generations. Today, four looming luxury “mega towers” may be the historic neighborhood's biggest threat. Here, the landlord ignores requests for basic maintenance from long-term tenants, but he sends crews to the building to fully renovate the vacant apartments right across the hall. These new “luxury” apartments rent for thousands a month.

Fabian Bravo and his family in Sunset Park, Brooklyn have been defending their right to live in a space safe from mold, lead, flooding, freezing temperatures and they have been locked in a fierce battle against their landlord for 15 years. Through home video and archival footage, we follow the family’s decades-long fight.