Note: This report is based on the Philly Power Research Campaign Finance Dataset. The numbers included in this article include all contributions to candidates from January 1, 2022 through March 27, 2023. Almost all contributions of $1,500 or greater have been coded by sector, but about 12 percent of the money contributed during 2022-2023 has not been coded, so it is likely that real estate contribution numbers may be slightly higher in reality than what is shown here. This post was written in collaboration with the Philly DSA rent control campaign.

The Mayoral Primary

The Real Estate & Building Industry sector has outspent every other sector in this year’s mayoral primary. Excluding self-contributions by candidates Allan Domb and Jeff Brown[1], nearly 1 in 5 dollars (18.9 percent) contributed to mayoral campaigns flow from the Real Estate & Building Industry. 

Real Estate & Building Industry donors have lined up behind three main mayoral candidates: Jeff Brown, Allan Domb, and Rebecca Rhynhart. Of the over 1.5 million dollars that the Real Estate & Building Industry (excluding Allan Domb’s self-contribution) has contributed to mayoral candidates, Jeff Brown has received $539,650 (36 percent of contributions), Allan Domb has received $385,217 (25 percent of contributions), and Rebecca Rhynhart has received $283,134 (19 percent of contributions). Together, these three candidates have received 8 out of every 10 dollars flowing out of the Real Estate & Building Industry, excluding Allan Domb’s self-contribution. By contrast, Cherelle Parker has received $130,675 in Real Estate & Building Industry contributions, which amounts to about 9% of contributions from the industry, and Helen Gym has received about 6% of contributions, in the amount of $88,010, of contributions from the Real Estate & Building Industry.

Another way to think about the influence of the Real Estate & Building Industry is to look at how dependent each candidate is on contributions from the Real Estate & Building Industry. Three candidates (Jeff Brown, Alan Domb, and Rebecca Rhynhart) have received more contributions from the Real Estate & Building Industry than any other industry or sector. For Jeff Brown, Real Estate & Building Industry donors make up 26 percent of his donor base (excluding his self-contribution). For Allan Domb, outside of his seven million dollar self-contribution, Real Estate & Building Industry donors make up nearly 36 percent of his donor base. For Rebecca Rhynhart, Real Estate & Building Industry donors make up nearly 19 percent of her donor base. By contrast, only 5 percent of Helen Gym’s contributions come from the Real Estate & Building Industry, and the Real Estate & Building Industry only makes up 11 percent of Cherelle Parker’s base. 

City Council Races

Council At-Large

The Real Estate & Building Industry sector has contributed nearly 449,000 dollars to at-large city council candidate campaigns (over 14 percent of contributions). Once we remove Nina Ahmad’s self-contributions,[2] the Real Estate & Building Industry’s favorite candidates are: Katherine Gilmore Richardson (received $67,343), Eryn Santamoor (received $47,350), Max Tuttleman (received $42,450), Donavan West (received $35,100), and Isaiah Thomas (received $34,600).

Certain at-large candidates are receiving significant amounts of their campaign contributions from Real Estate & Building Industry donors. Of the candidates who have fundraised at least $50,000, there are 6 at-large candidates who received more than 15% of their campaign contributions from the Real Estate & Building Industry:Katherine Gilmore Richardson (15 percent of donor base), Eryn Santamoor (18 percent of donor base), Job Itzkowitz (22 percent of donor base), Max Tuttlemen (32 percent of donor base), Jim Hasher (16 percent of donor base), and Donavan West (52 percent of donor base).

By contrast, of the candidates who have fundraised at least $50,000, there are 4 at-large candidates who received less than 3% of their contributions from Real Estate & Building Industry: Erika Almiron (0.7 percent of donor base), Nic O’Rourke (2.6 percent of donor base), Kendra Brooks (2 percent of donor base), and Amanda McIllmurray (1.7 percent of donor base). 

District 7

In the Seventh District, Real Estate & Building Industry donors have spent $22,475 and lined up behind incumbent Quetcy Lozada over her challenger Andres Celin. Over 97% of those contributions ($21,900) were directed to Lozada’s campaign. 

District 8

In the Eighth District, Real Estate & Building Industry donors have spent $108,210 and lined up behind incumbent Cindy Bass over her challenger Seth Anderson-Oberman. About 95% of those contributions ($102,850) have been directed to Cindy Bass’s campaign. 

Landlords Behind “Eviction Hotspots” Have Contributed Tens of Thousands of Dollars 

In Philadelphia, a small number of buildings are responsible for a disproportionate share of eviction cases. The landlords who run these eviction hotspots[3] have spent tens of thousands of dollars in the primary election.

Companies affiliated with Post Brothers, which operates the Rittenhouse Hill Apartment Complex (59 eviction filings over the course of the last year) and the Poplar (28 eviction filings over the course of the last year), have contributed $69,000 to municipal candidate campaigns, including $37,800 to Jeff Brown, $25,200 to Rebecca Rhynhart, $3,000 to Quetcy Lozada, $2,000 to Donavan West, and $1,000 to John Thomas.

Lindy Communities, which operates Joshua House Apartment (53 eviction filings over the course of the last year), YONO Apartments (42 eviction filings over the course of the last year), 7400 Roosevelt Apartments, (22 eviction filings over the course of the last year), and Academia Suites (22 eviction filings over the course of the last year), and the business’s key principals have contributed tens of thousands of dollars to various campaigns. Alan Lindy has contributed $32,400, including: $12,700 to Allan Domb, $6,200 to Jeff Brown, $3,000 to Katherine Gilmore Richardson, $3,000 to Rebecca Rhynhart, $2,000 to Cindy Bass, $2,000 to Eryn Santamoor, $2,000 to Jalon Alexander, and $1,500 to Cherelle Parker. Elaine Lindy has contributed $17,500 to various campaigns, including: $9,300 to Rebecca Rhynhart, $3,000 to Jalon Alexander, $2,000 to Allan Domb, $2,000 to Jeff Brown, and $1,250 to Cindy Bass. Frank H. Lindy has contributed $9,500 to campaigns, including $5,000 to Jeff Brown, $2,500 to Rebeca Rhynhart, and $2,000 to Allan Domb. Companies affiliated with Lindy Property Management have contributed $5,750, including: $2,000 to Kenyatta Johnson, $1,500 to Cherelle Parker, $1,250 to Katherine Gilmore Richardson, and $1,000 to Isaiah Thomas.

The founder of Odin Properties, which operates Allegheny Apartments (30 eviction filings over the course of the last year), Spencers Court (25 eviction filings over the course of the last year), Westmoreland Apartments (23 eviction filings over the course of the last year), Griscom Apartments (22 eviction filings over the course of the last year), Girard Court Apartment Complex (22 eviction filings over the course of the last year, including an eviction that ended up with a tenant, Angel Davis, being shot by a landlord-tenant officer during the eviction), and Grand Leiper Apartments (21 eviction filings over the course of the last year), has contributed $11,754, including $6,754 to Gym, $2,000 to Thomas, $1,000 to Domb, $1,000 to Bass, and $1,000 to Tutttleman.

University City Housing, which operates Summit Park Apartments (49 eviction filings over the course of the last year) and Woodmere (22 eviction filings over the course of the last year) has contributed $12,600 to Jeff Brown, $10,000 to Max Tuttleman, and $125,000 to Philadelphians for Our Future, the SuperPAC supporting Cherelle Parker.[4] University City Housing and its owner Michael Karp are major donors to Republican candidates for the PA state legislature.[5]

Footnotes

[1] As of 3/27/23, donors had contributed over sixteen million dollars to mayoral candidates since the start of 2022. Half of the contributions came from self-donations from mayoral candidates Allan Domb (in the amount of approximately seven million dollars) and Jeff Brown (in the amount of approximately one million dollars). After 3/27/23, Domb gave another $3.7 million and Jeff Brown gave another $3 million to their campaigns.

[2] Like Allan Domb, Nina Ahmad has contributed a significant amount of her own family’s income from the real estate industry to her campaign. As of March 27, she had contributed $90,550 of her own money to her campaign.

[3] See Eviction Lab

[4] See Philadelphians For Our Future PAC campaign finance filing

[5] See FollowTheMoney.org