Michael Blake: We’ll fund deeply affordable housing by taxing vacant luxury apartments, recovering unclaimed fines, and boosting business tax revenue. Our plan includes expanding Mitchell-Lama-style, middle-class housing, using Local Median Income instead of Area Median Income, and raising income thresholds for applicants. We’ll streamline zoning and permitting, cut delays at the Housing Preservation and Development department, and speed up payments to developers and nonprofits to prevent housing slowdowns — even in tough markets. We’ll also repair NYCHA, enforce voucher acceptance, and push for transparency and accountability.
Whitney Tilson: The City of Yes initiative was a step in the right direction, but the City Council watered it down so much that it’s only expected to create 80,000 new units in the next 15 years. We need to build at least 500,000 units in the next decade. The primary way to achieve this is via private sector investment so, in addition to easing zoning restrictions, we must accelerate the permitting and approval process. I will cut unnecessary regulations and ensure relevant city departments are properly staffed. I will also expand public-private partnerships like the infill development underway at the NYCHA Fulton and Elliott-Chelsea Houses.
Lastly, I will push Albany to amend the 2019 rent-regulation law. I support closing the loopholes that let owners sharply increase rents after limited capital improvements, but the law went too far, making it economically unfeasible for owners to do renovations needed to bring rent-stabilized apartments back on the market, resulting in tens of thousands of vacancies.
Jessica Ramos: New York City’s property tax system overburdens working-class renters while giving breaks to wealthy homeowners. I’m committed to reforming it by adopting the NYC Advisory Commission’s recommendations: Shift to a system based on real market value, cap annual increases, and ensure transparency and fairness. This will lower costs for multifamily housing and free up capital for affordable development.
I’ll also streamline approvals at HPD and the city Housing Development Corporation, expand mission-driven housing on public land, and partner with labor to build workforce housing and limited-equity homeownership. With high interest rates slowing projects, we’ll use city capital to unlock stalled developments and deepen affordability.
Zellnor Myrie: Addressing the housing crisis is my top priority. Through Rebuild NYC, my plan to deliver one million homes over the next decade, I will tackle rising rents and displacement head-on. By increasing housing supply and making homes accessible to all income levels, we can create a city where people can afford to live, work and raise families.
My plan calls for 700,000 new units and the preservation of 300,000 homes. RebuildNYC uses city tools like increased density in ultra-dense areas through mandatory inclusionary housing and rezoning to allow more residential construction. My plan also secures permanent revenue for NYCHA’s future. The city’s failure to act has worsened this crisis. We can’t afford band-aid solutions: Either we build the housing New Yorkers need, or we risk losing them.
Zohran Mamdani: I will triple the amount of housing built with city capital funds, constructing 200,000 permanently affordable homes for low-income households, seniors and working families. I will allocate an additional $70 billion in capital dollars in the City’s Ten-Year Capital Plan to fund this, raised on the municipal bond market. We will also fund this by using the city’s public land as a source of subsidy and the existing voucher system more effectively by pooling rental assistance.
In order to manage debt service in markets with high interest rates, I will work to increase bonding capacity for HDC — which can provide more favorable lending terms — require more flexibility at the Office of Management and Budget to streamline financing, and fully staff HPD to cut down on pre-development timelines, which tend to be a huge driver of costs.
This will be done alongside increasing density around transit hubs, eliminating parking minimums, and putting forward a comprehensive citywide plan for housing development.
Scott Stringer: My Mitchell-Lama 2.0 Plan builds on proven housing programs and commits the city to creating and preserving affordable homes. We will conduct a citywide survey to identify vacant lots and underutilized public properties and prioritize them for housing. I’ll create incentives and mandate that at least 50% of new developments serve low- and middle-income families. My administration will invest $500 million in a revolving loan fund to support developers, cut red tape to expedite construction, and secure $40 billion to invest in NYCHA repairs, modernization and expansion. We have too many bureaucratic processes that delay changes New Yorkers need.
Brad Lander: I will declare a housing affordability “state of emergency” to speed up housing production and protect tenants. My housing plan will build 500,000 homes over the next decade — including 50,000 affordable homes for New Yorkers to own or rent in new neighborhoods on four of the city’s 12 municipal golf courses, with more along new transit lines. I will rebuild a meaningful pathway to homeownership for working class New Yorkers, through a new wave of permanently affordable cooperatives (a 21st-century version of Mitchell-Lama) and a Homes for City Workers program that doubles the home-purchasing power of municipal employees. I will triple the city’s capital spending on housing and issue expanded revenue bonds so the Preservation Trust can act as a land bank and public developer. Finally, I am the only candidate with plans to reform HPD and fix NYCHA so they can deliver on their goals.
Adrienne Adams: My record of approving the creation of 120,000 new homes through zoning reforms and securing $8 billion for affordable housing and homeownership is unparalleled. As mayor, I’ll ensure the city follows through on these accomplishments to deepen housing affordability. I’ll build 500,000 more homes, commit greater funds for repairs in NYCHA, protect Mitchell-Lama developments, and invest over $1 billion more annually in affordable housing. I’ll prioritize hiring enough staff in our city’s housing agencies, cut red tape, speed up approvals and fight to reform state laws that block or slow housing development. I’ll also efficiently use guaranteed income and housing vouchers to help more families out of homelessness, saving the city money and stabilizing lives.
