Rent Guidelines Board approves increases for rent-stabilized apartments in NYC
The vote raises rent by 2.75% on 1-year leases and 5.25% on 2-year leases
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- A board voted Monday night to raise rents on one-year and two-year leases for rent-stabilized apartments in New York City.
The highly-anticipated vote was held Monday night at Hunter College.
Protesters blocked the roadway and entrance to the hearing, prompting police to place about eight to 10 demonstrators into custody, including a state assembly member.
Many others decided to boycott the meeting this year, saying the board doesn't listen to them anyway.
Inside the school, the New York City Rent Guidelines Board approved 2.75% increases on one-year leases and 5.25% increases on two-year leases.
The decision applies to rent-stabilized apartments, lofts, and hotels.
Mayor Eric Adams says the board had a difficult task: striking a balance between protecting tenants from infeasible rent increases, and ensuring property owners can afford to make necessary repairs and upkeep.
"We are grateful for the board's careful consideration of the data and their decision to limit increases this year," Adams said. "As we have said from day one, the only way to ultimately lower rents is to build more housing, and we are using every tool in the our toolkit to build that housing more quickly - cutting red tape, implementing the new state tools we fought hard to attain, financing record numbers of affordable housing, and advancing the 'City of Yes for Housing Opportunity' zoning amendment that will clear the way to build a little more housing across the city in every borough."
While the 2.75% increase for one-year leases was on the lower end compared to the proposed numbers, the 5.25% hike for two-year leases represented somewhat of a middle ground for the original proposed numbers.
Here were the proposed numbers before the vote:
However, parties on all sides of the decision appeared unhappy about the outcome of the vote.
"Raising rents on tenants who cannot afford it does not help landlords who are suffering, all it does is cause tenants to be evicted," said New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.
The Rent Stabilization Association, which represents the landlords who own about a million rent stabilized apartments, isn't happy either, saying the hikes are still too low to keep up with their rising costs like insurance.
"So while we thank the RGB for its deliberations and its professionalism, these numbers are simply insufficient," said Michael Taubman of the Rent Stabilization Association.
Tenants are of course disappointed, pointing to the landlords who fail to hold up their end of their agreements.
"They've made uninhabitable living conditions consistently and increasingly despite complaints to 311, to HPD," said tenant Sara Rice.
But advocates say there are resources for responsible landlords who need assistance.
"But what you don't have is ways to help tenants who are struggling day to day," said New York State Assemblymember Harvey Epstein. "Section 8 lists are way too long, hundreds of thousands of people. There isn't the rent support there for tenants. And the eviction will cost us, the taxpayers $3,000 to 4,000 a month, every month a family is in a shelter."
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