Costs Threaten New York City Mayor’s Rent Plan

By Ryan Hutchins 5:56 a.m. | Jun. 4, 2014 The line to get into the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Customs House stretched out the door for a good hundred feet one evening in early May. The tightly-controlled structure on the Bowling Green was not the best choice of location for a meeting that would turn out…

The mayor faces serious challenges to his agenda on affordable housing, rezoning and neighborhood development October 01, 2014 By Adam Pincus Nobody ever said the job would be easy. But as Mayor Bill de Blasio moves deeper into his tenure, the challenges he’s facing on the real estate front are coming into greater focus. Despite…

JULY 7, 2014 As housing costs across New York City skyrocket, rent stabilization is often one of the only protections keeping low-income, working-class and middle-class folks in their neighborhoods for the long-term. Yet, on June 23rd, New York City’s Rent Guidelines Board voted for a rent increase for the city’s 2.5 million rent-stabilized tenants. Ignoring…

With only 11 days until the 2014 general election, political junkies are watching the battle for the New York State Senate closely to see which party will control the chamber. But for tenants and housing advocates, this coming election is only the starting point: the real date to watch is June 15, 2015, the day…

Families, minorities pushed out by waves of tenants who can pay more. June 25, 2014 By Solvej Schou For renters’ rights advocate Jean Folkes, the fight to maintain stabilized rents in increasingly pricey New York City—where rents average a massive $3,000 a month—is not only political but personal. The Brooklyn tenant has spent months passionately…

July 28, 2014 Rents have become increasingly unaffordable in New York City. NYC has been in a housing crisis for decades. A housing crisis, defined as under 5 percent vacancy rate, in NYC triggers an elaborate system of rent regulation. Rent regulation is not a subsidy program, but a system in which rents are regulated…