NY Gov. Kathy Hochul, legislative leaders come to initial agreement on landmark housing deal
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Gov. Kathy Hochul and top state lawmakers struck a housing deal Friday, clearing a major hurdle for state budget negotiations that have dragged on nearly two weeks past deadline, sources said.
The preliminary agreement would allow tenants in many market-rate units in New York City to challenge lease hikes of more than 10% in housing court, according to the sources.
It also aims to boost production of badly needed new and affordable housing in the city, including by lifting a decades-old state law that caps the density of buildings in Manhattan.
A Post investigation revealed how badly the 1961 law, known as the 12 FAR cap, backfired — banning buildings like those that line Central Park while allowing controversial super-tall towers to move forward.
Hochul, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) and state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Westchester) struck the preliminary deal Friday afternoon.
Heastie and Stewart-Cousins later presented their plans to their conferences.
Details of the plan are still emerging, but sources said the package would:
Allow tenants in market rate apartments who face eviction to challenge rent hikes if they exceed the rate of inflation plus 5%, or 10% overall — a major win long sought by lefty politicians and tenant activists.
Give developers a tax break if they set aside 20-25% apartments in new buildings for middle class families making 80% of the city’s average salary — about $90,000 a year for a family of two, or $113,000 for a family of four. Under federal guidelines, those apartments would rent for $2,119 for a one-bedroom and $2,937 for a three-bedroom.
Speed conversions of empty office towers into housing potentially giving a shot in the arm to both Midtown and the Financial District, which have struggled to regain their footing following the pandemic and the shift to work-from-home.
Labeled “Good Cause” by supporters, the legislation would also require landlords to give tenants who keep current on their an automatic lease renewal, helping to prevent retaliation for reporting problems in units.
It had been a major demand from lawmakers aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America and other lefty groups.
Developers had fought to exempt new construction from the proposal, while small landlords were pushing to exempt small buildings.
Landlords did score a minor win by getting lawmakers to agree to increase the amount they can spend to renovate a unit and pass onto tenants from $15,000 to $30,000.
Property owners had been pushing for a far higher cap.
Word of the deal angered some tenant activists, including Cea Weaver, the Director of Housing Justice for All, who was arrested earlier this week in Albany for blocking access to the governor’s office in protest of any potential concessions to landlords.
Developers also signaled they were less than thrilled with the outcome.
“For the last several years, we have pushed to address New York City’s supply driven housing crisis through policies to create more homes for New Yorkers and ensure existing homes stay in good repair,” said Jim Whelan, the top Albany strategist for the Real Estate Board.
“We will review the details of a potential housing package.”
A preliminary agreement on housing – which some Albany politicos had thought impossible as of a week ago – represents a major hurdle cleared for the rest of the state budget which was due April 1.
