NYC Rent Guidelines Board proposes potential increases for rent-stabilized apartments
New York City's Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) held a preliminary vote Thursday proposing a potential increase for 1 million rent-stabilized apartments across the five boroughs.
The board approved ranges that included no increases, voting to support 0-2% hikes for one-year leases and 0-4% hikes for two-year leases.
Additional public meetings will be held in June, and a final vote on the proposals will take place on June 25.
Mamdani reacts to vote
Mayor Zohran Mamdani ran on a campaign promise to freeze the rent, and back in February appointed six of the nine Rent Guidelines Board members.
He responded to the vote in a statement, saying:
"New Yorkers are being crushed by the cost of living, and they need real relief. 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.
"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."
"The affordability crisis is affecting everybody"
More than 100 renters gathered in Queens, where the vote was held, waving signs and chanting for a rent freeze. They say a rent increase will only line the pockets of landlords, instead of going toward needed building repairs and improvements.
Advocates argue that affordability is critical to keep the city running.
"Right now, the affordability crisis is affecting everybody, and rent is the number one issue, so if the teachers, the bus drivers, the nurses, the people who make the city what it is can't afford to live here, then what are we doing?" said Sumathy Kumar, director of the New York State Tenant Bloc.
Landlords say rent freeze not warranted
Some landlords, however, argue that operating costs are going up. Kenny Burgos, CEO of the New York Apartment Association, said nothing in available data proves a rent freeze is warranted.
"On the backdrop of double-digit increases of insurance, in property tax, increases in water, fuel, labor, you name it, putting a 0% increase only threatens to add more apartments," he said. "You are subjecting more and more tenants to bankrupted housing."
Stay with CBS News New York for the latest on this developing story.
