New York City's rent board voted on Wednesday to consider extending a rent freeze for the city's stabilized tenants, keeping the possibility of a modest increase on the table while rejecting the landlord group's proposal for a steeper hike.
In a preliminary vote, the mayor-appointed Rent Guidelines Board indicated that they would consider keeping rents flat on one-year leases for regulated tenants, with a ceiling of a 2% increase. The possible range for two-year leases will be between 1 and 3%, the panel signaled.
The preliminary vote comes after the board voted last summer to freeze rents on one-year leases, citing the extraordinary economic toll of the pandemic. The nine-member panel — composed of five public members, and two each representing landlords and tenants — will cast a final vote next month.
The possibility of another rent freeze has incensed landlord groups, including the Real Estate Board of New York, which has argued that the board failed take into account additional operating expenses incurred due to COVID-19 safety protocols. Joseph Strasburg, the president of the landlord-aligned Rent Stabilization Association, called the proposal "beyond irrational."
At Wednesday's meeting, the board's owner-representing members alleged that the recent rent freezes approved by the board — four in the last seven years — amounted to a "disinvestment plan" in the city's stock of roughly 1 million rent regulated apartments.
“The impacts to owners over the past 15 months have been historically unprecedented," said landlord-member Scott Walsh, whose own proposal to raise rents close to 6% on some leases was shot down by the board. "A real estate owner is not a public service entity," he added.
In response, Sheila Garcia, one of two members representing tenants, noted that landlord groups had routinely claimed the "sky would fall" if they were not permitted to raise rents on regulated apartments.
She said that most struggling tenants have yet to receive any rent relief, and noted that the billions of dollars in federal funding that is soon to be disbursed will also help landlords. Earlier this week, the state officially extended the eviction moratorium through the end of August.
"Our assumption that tenants are going to have all the back rent pay is premature," Garcia added. "For folks in the Bronx, for folks across the city who were struggling during the pandemic, the struggle is ongoing."
Her own proposal to roll back rents on one-year leases by up to 3% was, like the one put forth by landlords, rejected by a vote of 7-2. The board has never before voted to decrease rents.
After nearly an hour, Board Chair David Reiss put forward the compromise ranges, which passed 5-4, with opposition from both landlord and tenant representatives.
The public will have a chance to testify at virtual hearings next month. A final vote is expected on June 23rd.
