A $50 million aid program for low-income renters, pushed for years by both tenants and landlords, is finally included in this year’s state budget — albeit in a shrunken and temporary form. As part of the deal, the real estate industry won a separate change that will make it easier for landlords to convert some rental apartments into condominiums.
A four-year pilot of the Housing Access Voucher Program will be approved by the Legislature on Thursday as part of the $254 billion budget thanks to a late-stage concession by Gov. Kathy Hochul, who previously opposed it over cost concerns. Only $50 million has been allocated to cover HAVP’s first year, well short of the $250 million that advocates had wanted annually. The program aims to help individuals and families who are homeless or at risk of losing their housing, although the modest funding may limit its initial reach.
The voucher-for-condo deal is among the few notable housing policies to emerge from this year’s budget negotiations, which, unlike the last few years, included little discussion of significant steps to ease the state’s worsening shortage of homes. The final deal does include some of Hochul’s initial proposals, such as banning private equity firms from bidding on one- and two-family homes during their first few weeks on the market and creating a $100 million infrastructure fund for localities that earn a “pro-housing” designation.
Expected cuts to federal housing programs that could upend New York’s rental landscape gave momentum to this year’s voucher talks by reinforcing the need for New York to protect its tenants, Linda Rosenthal, who chairs the state Assembly’s housing committee, told Crain’s. Rosenthal was less enthused about the condo-conversion measure, a priority of the Real Estate Board of New York, which will let landlords in certain buildings convert a unit into a condo if 15% of the building’s residents approve it — down from 51% under current law.
“It’s enormously important, a great stride forward,” Rosenthal said of the voucher program. HAVP will be the first program of its kind statewide, though it can be paired with existing aid systems like Section 8 and the city’s FHEPs vouchers.
Rosenthal said lawmakers were able to negotiate for the four-year pilot instead of a shorter two-year version the governor’s office had proposed.
The program, whose language will be approved as early as Thursday, will let the state give vouchers to people or families that are homeless or at risk of losing their homes and earn no more than 50% of the area median income. Vouchers can be issued starting March 1, 2026 by local agencies working with the state — which, for New York City, means both the Housing Preservation and Development department “and/or” the New York City Housing Authority. Local housing agencies will make the voucher payments directly to landlords.
Tenants will be on the hook for rent payments up to 30% of their monthly income, with vouchers covering the rest; they will no longer be eligible for vouchers if they earn enough for their rent to fall below 30%. Vouchers can also cover up to five months of rent arrears to help tenants avoid eviction, and payments can only cover between 90% to 120% of federally-designated fair market rent in a given area.
The state’s housing agency will allocate the vouchers to counties around the state — and to New York City as a whole — relying on U.S. Census data showing how many households in each area pay more than 50% of their incomes in rent. Priority for vouchers will belong to people who are already homeless, and tenants are eligible regardless of immigration status.
The program’s creation was hailed by tenant groups including Women In Need and Housing Justice for All, as well as landlord groups such as REBNY and the New York Apartment Association. But most were critical of the modest $50 million allocation, which will “likely only help a few thousand renters,” according to Jay Martin, executive vice president of NYAA.
Rosenthal said she and other lawmakers will need to “fight for more and more funding” to keep HAVP going through the lifespan of the four-year pilot and beyond. The budget language also includes a reporting requirement, tasking the state’s housing agency — and HPD or NYCHA, within the city — with submitting annual data starting Nov. 1, 2026 showing how much money was spent on vouchers, how many households applied and were waitlisted, and how much money a typical voucher covered.
The condo-conversion policy, meanwhile, is meant to help landlords preserve affordable rental units in their buildings by giving them new cash flows through for-sale units. The policy in the budget resembles a bill that has been pending in the Legislature since 2021, with support from both REBNY and certain housing groups including Habitat for Humanity.
The relaxed conversion rules would only apply to buildings built after 1996 and containing at least 100 apartments. The agreement tying condo conversions to the voucher program was first reported by City & State.
Jim Whelan, the president of REBNY, thanked state leaders for supporting both vouchers and the condo policy, known as the Affordable housing Retention Act.
“These initiatives are smart long-term investments that will lead to housing stability and create pathways to home ownership,” Whelan said.
