There might be a rude awakening coming for nearly a million New York City renters, with a proposed rent hike meant to make up for lots of lost time — and money.
The city says about 966,000 apartments throughout the five boroughs are rent-stabilized, meaning the amount that leases can charge monthly for those units can go up following the latest recommendations by the Rent Guidelines Board.
The board has suggested raising prices this year by just under 3% up to 4.5% on one-year leases. For two-year leases, it could increase anywhere from 4% to 9%.
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The Rent Stabilization Association, which represents building owners and agents, is asking for 4.5 percent to 6.5 percent increases, according to the groups Vice President of Communication, Vito Signorile.
"They’re still dealing with the fact that rents weren’t paid during the pandemic and all their operating expenses went up. There was no moratorium on property taxes, water bills, heating bills," Signorile said.
The RSA said that while while and other costs have gone up, rent guidelines have not.
"Over an eight year period, the average one-year guideline was less than one percent, and that’s just insufficient to maintain the buildings," Signorile said.
For eight years now, Rockwell Reid has lived in a rent-stabilized two-bedroom apartment in the Financial District of Manhattan with his wife and daughter. His rent has slowly gone up about one or two percent a year — but that could change dramatically when his lease expires in July.
"I think tenants have to expect an increase sort of across the board, but I think four-to-six percent is pretty steep," Reid said. "Are residents who are working getting that same percentage increase in their salary?"
Shaylah Reyes is worried about living with her 3-year-old son, Zaire, in her rent-stabilized apartment in the Bronx.
"I just don’t think it’s right because it’s already hard enough as is, so making it harder — making it ten times harder — for people who already live from check to check, it’s just gonna have more homeless people on the street," Reyes said.
The Rent Guidelines Board will take a preliminary vote on May 5th. With public hearings and a final vote expected at the end of June.
