NYC Rent Guidelines Board approves 2-year rent freeze, fulfilling Mamdani campaign pledge

In a 7-to-1 vote on Thursday night, the city's Rent Guidelines Board enacted the first two-year rent freeze in New York City history. The decision follows a campaign pledge by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who appointed six of the board’s nine members. The freeze applies to approximately one million rent-stabilized units, including those in buildings with six or more apartments built before 1974.

While tenant advocates celebrated the outcome at the hearing in East Harlem, landlord groups condemned the move. The Real Estate Board of New York warned the freeze would exacerbate the housing crisis, citing the rising costs of insurance, labor, and fuel. One landlord representative resigned hours before the vote, alleging the board ignored financial data in favor of political pressure.

Summary by Dispatch AI — read the full story at Gothamist.