Addressing Housing Affordability
Addressing the Housing Crisis in New York City
The single biggest issue facing New York City is our housing crisis. While rents across the country have declined for 20 consecutive months, ours, already the highest, have continued to rise.
It’s the main reason why, in less than five years, we’ve lost over 700,000 people – 8% of our population. That's the second-worst of the 70 largest cities in America, trailing only San Francisco. New Yorkers simply can’t pay their rent.
The crisis is rooted in supply and demand. A lot of people still want to live here, but we’ve made it almost impossible to build new housing and maintain existing units.
What our city needs is an abundance of housing.
This will require effective management, legislative changes and investment by the city government, but also billions in investment by private developers.
I’ve spoken with many of them and they consistently tell me two things: first, that they want to invest here. With its wealth, population density, 1.4% vacancy rate and high rents, our city should be the most attractive market in the country in which to invest.
But the second thing they say is that the city “treats us like the enemy.”
One developer told me that the permitting process is interminable and uncertain. Another is stuck in a two-year environmental review – which shouldn’t take more than two months. Another said a section of the fence around the construction site blew down and the city inspector, instead of telling them to fix it (which would have taken half an hour), issued a stop-work order that idled the entire site for a day.
The most shocking story was from a long-time city developer who owns a parcel of land in a depressed area of the city. He wants to build more than 1,000 units of affordable housing, revitalize the area and create a vibrant, livable community with essential services like a supermarket.
But he hasn’t been able to get approval – neither a yes nor a no – from the Department of City Planning. He’s been dealing with a rotating cast of junior staffers who won’t even meet in person – just on Zoom. After spending two years and $2 million, he’s given up and invested in another city.
In order to make housing more affordable, we need to cut red tape, reform outdated policies, and unlock development at scale. As a business leader, I understand both the challenges and the opportunities around our housing supply, and I will do everything in my power to reform our system so that more people can access the American Dream here in New York City.
In consultation with housing experts, I’ve developed an innovative agenda to mobilize resources to make New York City an affordable place to live, and to raise a family just like I did.
As Mayor, I will:
Direct City Hall and work with the City Council to simplify our zoning laws. The recently passed City of Yes legislation is a step in the right direction, but the projected 80,000 new units it will lead to in the next 15 years is only 10% of what’s necessary. I will fight for the other 90%.
Streamline the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) to remove inefficiencies by cutting the timeline for application and pre-certification in half.
Consolidating oversight, improving staffing levels, and digitizing processes to help reduce the costs, delays and uncertainties that deter development, particularly in agencies like the Department of City Planning, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, and Department of Buildings.
Instruct NYCHA to pursue additional “infill” projects like the one underway at the Fulton Homes in Chelsea.
Reimagine our manufacturing districts through strategic upzoning of M1 and M2 districts to mixed-use (MX) with relaxed height restrictions, which can yield an estimated 284,000 new housing units, or 142,000 affordable units using a 50% affordability requirement.
Relaunch a more targeted 421a tax abatement program with more nuanced income bands, deeper affordability options (down to 40% AMI), and sophisticated market-specific provisions that are distinct to New York City, which could help create up to 89,000 total units, with 58,000 designated as affordable housing.
Push the state to amend the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 such that owners of rent-stabilized apartments can earn a fair return on necessary investments to renovate empty units and return an estimated 25,000-50,000 of them to the market.
Expand and redesign workforce training programs to help address labor shortages in the construction industry, lower costs and speed up new development.
Reduce restrictions on faith-based organizations to partner with more of them to expand affordable housing (and serve New Yorkers in many other ways).
Implement a ‘Guest Room Program’ that would make it easier for homeowners to rent empty bedrooms – there are an estimated one million in the city – for a minimum of three months.