Will a Housing Deal Make New York More Affordable?

New York State officials have set the stage to take action on the state’s housing crisis. On Monday, the governor announced a framework for a package of housing laws that would make it easier to build homes and curb the skyrocketing cost of living.

Leaders are still hashing out details. But proponents say the package could be a significant and overdue move in New York, where housing costs continue to be a huge burden on residents and the economy.

In New York City, the typical household can reasonably afford to rent a $1,750 apartment, according to city estimates. But the median rent in market-rate New York City apartments was $2,000 in 2023, and in many parts of the city, the price is far higher. In Manhattan, the median monthly rent on a new lease is roughly $4,000.

Part of the package will seek to address the economics driving the crisis: The supply of homes is not large enough to meet the demand, but property taxes, high interest rates and the cost of labor have made construction prohibitively expensive, developers say. While it is impossible to know how many additional homes are needed to accommodate everyone who might want to live in New York City, most guesses put the number in the hundreds of thousands.

The new housing package may balance out some of those costs, though the details will determine the effectiveness of each measure. The plan is also facing blowback from some landlords and from advocates for housing growth and tenant groups who say it does not do enough to help tenants. Here is what leaders are discussing.

A Tax Deal for Developers

It may feel like new apartments are constantly being built across New York City. But experts are clear: There still aren’t enough.