Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s rent freeze is coming in for a landing.
New York’s Rent Guidelines Board voted Thursday to raise rents in regulated apartments by a range starting with zero — meaning a freeze is very much on the table. The board approved increases of 0-2 percent on one-year leases and 0-4 percent on two-year leases starting in October. The range was approved in a 7-1 vote with one member abstaining.
Tenant advocates who had agitated for a rent freeze were not satisfied with the vote. Organized groups booed the result, instead suggesting the board should support a negative range with zero as the ceiling rather than the floor.
The vote is preliminary, meaning things could change. Anything short of a freeze would be a win for landlords, but would be incredibly unpopular with Mamdani’s base, considering he campaigned on a platform of four years of no increases.
Some landlord groups, perhaps grappling with the political reality, have been agitating for the board to at the very least give a rent boost to older buildings, which are generally facing more distress. The board typically gives one number for the entire housing stock, not differentiating increases based on building characteristics. The board showed no indication of considering proposals to “split” the increases at the preliminary vote in Long Island City.
Before the 0-2 percent range was approved, tenant members of the board proposed a negative range, which was voted down.
“Eric Adams raised our rent, give us back our 12 percent!” attendees shouted.
Real estate groups decried the eventual result, with the Small Property Owners of New York calling the decision “reckless and irresponsible.”
The New York Apartment Association, which represents rent-stabilized landlords, said the decision guarantees that building conditions will decline.
“An owner’s ability to pay for operating costs should matter to every tenant,” Kenny Burgos, CEO of NYAA said in a statement. “Rent isn’t going into the pockets of rent-stabilized owners, it’s going into keeping the buildings standing.”
Board research found that costs for rent stabilized owners had risen faster than general inflation, at 5.3 percent year over year.
“I’m encouraged to see the Board taking seriously the data around affordability, operating expenses, and the pressures facing both tenants and small property owners as it sets this preliminary range,” said Mayor Mamdani in a statement. “As the RGB begins its public hearings, tenants, owners, and New Yorkers from every borough should make their voices heard and speak directly to what this housing crisis looks like in their lives. I’m confident the Board will weigh those perspectives carefully and arrive at a decision later this summer that reflects the urgency of this moment.”
A rent freeze could open the Mamdani administration up to legal challenges from the real estate industry. Landlord groups have called attention to the mayor’s pre-election pledge to freeze rents, saying it undermines the independence and statutory process of the board. Mamdani appointed two-thirds of the nine-member board.
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