The five other vacant units will be put on the market over the next three months, he said.

By law sponsors are allowed to keep up to 10 percent of the units vacant for sale to outsiders.

The outsider value is estimated at $170,000, based on recent sales of comparable vacant units.

Outsiders were offered vacant units at about 20 percent below comparable neighborhood values.

One might be that the property has several vacant units on which no rent is paid.

"In fact, we have less total vacant units today than we did five years ago."

Also to make needed repairs, especially to 40 vacant units, each owner would have to be assessed $10,000 to $20,000.

But all of the vacant units are priced below the market.

Over several months, the Cooks seldom got to see a vacant unit, much less rent one.

It is those vacant units, he said, that have been converted to use in city programs.