Mayor: NYC Fighting 'Affordability Crisis' As Recent Poll Suggests Mass Exodus Could Be Coming
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Millions of New Yorkers say they can't afford to live here anymore.
CBS2's Jessica Moore has more on the skyrocketing cost of living and why some say they're better off moving out of state.
"Food, clothes, a lot of stuff is expensive New York. I mean, that's New York for you," Bronx resident Shalyne Torres said.
Torres said it's virtually impossible to afford living in New York City.
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When asked if she ever thought it was too expensive to stay, Torres said, "I was ready to leave New York. I was thinking I'll go to Jersey or somewhere that is cheaper in rent and stuff."
Torres is among the 41 percent of New Yorkers in a new Quinnipiac poll who say the cost of living is so high, they'll probably have to move out of the state within the next five years.
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And the problem seems to be getting worse year over year. In the same poll conducted last May, only 31 percent of people said New York was too expensive.
But in a city where the average Uber ride costs $22 and a movie ticket will set you back $16, most people polled say the biggest problem is the cost of housing. In Manhattan, the average rent price for a one-bedroom apartment is $3,116.
"Clearly housing costs are high in New York City," real estate expert Dan Geiger said. "Certainly it is a strain and there are folks who can't afford to be in the city. That is totally clear."
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"We're having an affordability crisis here," Mayor Bill de Blasio added.
CBS2 asked the mayor what his administration is doing about it. He pointed to two recent rent freezes and ongoing efforts to build affordable housing.
"We are fighting this crisis alone in New York City," de Blasio said. "There's almost no new state and federal assistance coming here to address it. If we had that kind of assistance we could reach so much ... tens of thousands and hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and help them live here."
In the meantime, one New Yorker had some advice for his neighbors.
"Just plan your future and maybe you don't need that Gucci belt after all," Upper West Side resident Frankie Aguilar said.
Function over fashion if you want to survive.
The mayor said another rent freeze is not out of the question.
