Affordable Housing

The city has released updated guidelines for its rent freeze programs that help senior citizens (aged 62 and over) and tenants with qualifying disabilities (aged 18 and over) stay in affordable housing by freezing their rent. Eligible tenants living in rent-controlled apartments can now freeze their rent at the preferential level, instead of the legal rent. “The City’s rent freeze programs have given tens of thousands of New Yorkers peace of mind and housing stability,” said Mayor de Blasio. “Now that we can freeze preferential rents, the program will bring even more relief.”
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Blackstone shifts course and commits to renting all vacant, affordable units at Stuy Town

Photo by Kelly on Wiki Commons

September 9, 2019

Blackstone shifts course and commits to renting all vacant, affordable units at Stuy Town

Blackstone Group has apparently shifted course and is now renovating and leasing all vacant units at Stuyvesant Town. This comes after the landlord faced criticism following revelations that the company has been keeping 20 to 50 percent of rent-regulated apartments at Stuy Town empty in reaction to the city's new rent laws. It didn't take long for authorities, including Mayor Bill de Blasio, to express concern over the findings. On Friday, a spokesperson for Blackstone told Gothamist, “We are renovating and leasing all vacant units, and we will continue to fulfill our commitment to voluntarily preserve 5,000 affordable apartments.”
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Lottery launches for 169 affordable units near Fordham University, from $475/month

Photo by Kristine Paulus on Flickr

August 29, 2019

Lottery launches for 169 affordable units near Fordham University, from $475/month

Applications are currently being accepted for 169 newly constructed affordable apartments in the Bronx neighborhood of Fordham Manor. Located at 2519 Creston Avenue just half mile from Fordham University's campus, the building sits on a corner overlooking St. James Park. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 40, 50, 60, 80, 90, and 110 percent of the area median income can apply for the units, ranging from a $475/month studio to a $2,158/month three-bedroom.
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Affordable Housing

Harlem church’s rezoning proposal includes new tower and music school, but still no developer

Rendering by FXCollaborative

August 28, 2019

Harlem church’s rezoning proposal includes new tower and music school, but still no developer

A Harlem church looking to rezone part of Central Park North revealed plans this week to incorporate a music school and cultural center to its proposal for a 33-story residential tower. During a City Planning Commission hearing on Wednesday, La Hermosa Christian Church and FXCollaborative presented their design for the apartment building and the three-story community facility space. Congregants and church officials say the building at 5 West 110th Street is deteriorating, with many of its spaces unusable and inaccessible. "The project that we're proposing means the survival of our church," La Hermosa Pastor Dan Feliciano told the commissioners.
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Blackstone leaves dozens of rent-stabilized Stuy Town apartments empty

Image via Flickr

August 28, 2019

Blackstone leaves dozens of rent-stabilized Stuy Town apartments empty

Sources told The Real Deal that Blackstone Group is keeping 20 to 50 rent-stabilized apartments at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village vacant, following state rent law changes that will impede the landlord's ability to raise rents through renovations. 6sqft reported last month that Blackstone—who purchased the massive 11,000+ unit apartment complex in partnership with Ivanhoe Cambridge for $5.5 billion in 2015—had stopped all non-urgent renovations and other planned work at Stuy Town and Peter Cooper Village as a result of the new rent laws.
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Nine mixed-income apartments available in the LES tower that replaced old Moscot HQ

Rendering of 118 Orchard Street by Gorlin Architects; View of former Moscot HQ via Google Street View

August 26, 2019

Nine mixed-income apartments available in the LES tower that replaced old Moscot HQ

Rendering of 118 Orchard Street by Gorlin Architects; View of former Moscot HQ via Google Street View A lottery has opened for nine mixed-income units at the new residential building rising in the Lower East Side at the corner of Orchard and Delancey. The new construction at 118 Orchard Street replaced the iconic Moscot eyeglasses store that had been there for 77 years until it moved across the street. The 12-story building topped out earlier this summer and will comprise 24 apartments in total. Individuals and households earning 70 to 130 percent of the area median income are eligible to apply for the handful of one- and three-bedroom apartments, which range from $1,115 to $2,777/month.
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Affordable Housing

City updates housing lottery policy to ease process for immigrants and low-income New Yorkers

Via Creative Commons

August 21, 2019

City updates housing lottery policy to ease process for immigrants and low-income New Yorkers

New Yorkers applying for affordable housing no longer need to provide credit scores or social security numbers, making it easier for low-income and undocumented immigrant households to qualify, the city announced Wednesday. The Department of Housing Preservation and Development expanded the guidelines of its affordable housing lottery policy to allow applicants to show 12 months of positive rental history instead of a credit check run by a landlord. This erases the need for adult household members to provide a social security number or an individual tax identification number.
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Waitlist reopens for ‘moderate-income’ rentals in Long Island City, with units up to $5,183/month

Via Flickr cc

August 19, 2019

Waitlist reopens for ‘moderate-income’ rentals in Long Island City, with units up to $5,183/month

Applications are currently being accepted to replenish the waitlist for moderate-income apartments at two Long Island City buildings. Located across from the newly opened Hunter's Point South Park, the towers at 1-50 50th Avenue and 1-55 Borden Avenue were developed in 2013 as part of the neighborhood's waterfront redevelopment, with a majority of the apartments set aside low- and middle-income households. But apartments available through the current waitlist are for households earning between $104,538 and $278,300 annually with units ranging from a $2,992/month one-bedroom to a $5,183/month three-bedroom. In 2017, the median household income in Queens was just over $64,500 per year.
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Affordable Housing

Lottery opens for 16 units from $2,100/month across from Bushwick’s Maria Hernandez Park

A lottery has opened for 16 not-very-affordable units in a newly-constructed building across the street from Maria Hernandez Park in Bushwick. The building at 260 Knickerbocker Avenue is the first high rise adjoining the park. Qualifying New Yorkers earning a whopping 130 percent of the area median income can apply for the available units, including $2,100/month one-bedrooms and $2,300/month two-bedrooms.
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Affordable Housing

LPC approves 14-story complex behind East New York’s landmarked Empire State Dairy building

Revised rendering from August by Dattner Architects via LPC

August 14, 2019

LPC approves 14-story complex behind East New York’s landmarked Empire State Dairy building

Update 8/14/19: The Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday approved Dattner Architects' plan to construct a 14-story building behind the Empire State Dairy. According to Brownstoner, the architects removed the cantilever element from the project's previous design and plan to preserve the chimney, instead of demolishing it. The new tower will replace two existing, but not landmarked, buildings, and include over 330 affordable apartments. An affordable housing developer on Tuesday presented plans to the Landmarks Preservation Commission for a new building that would cantilever over the Empire State Dairy building in East New York. HP Brooklyn Dairy Housing Development Fund Company, part of the nonprofit Housing Partnership Development Corporation, wants to construct a 14-story tower on top of the early 20th-century factory, located at 2840 Atlantic Avenue. Landmarked in 2017, the factory is notable for its architectural style and decorative tile murals. Dattner Architects created the designs for the proposed complex shown in the new renderings. The new construction would be a major change for the property, which was purchased by the developer for $16.75 million last year.
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114 mixed-income apartments up for grabs in Clinton Hill, from $896/month

Rendering of Athena North courtesy of Marvel Architects

August 14, 2019

114 mixed-income apartments up for grabs in Clinton Hill, from $896/month

A lottery opened this week for 114 mixed-income units at buildings that border the neighborhoods of Clinton Hill and Prospect Heights in Brooklyn. The newly constructed buildings are located at 909 Atlantic Avenue and 1043 Fulton Street, dubbed Athena South and Athena North, respectively. The affordable housing comes as part of the Hudson Companies' redevelopment of the Brooklyn Heights branch of the Brooklyn Public Library, which sits in the developer's new 38-story tower, One Clinton. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 60, 80, and 130 percent of the area median income can apply for the units, ranging from a $896/month studios to $2,952/month three-bedrooms.
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Affordable Housing

Thousands of Lower Manhattan tenants may be owed six years’ worth of back rent

Via Flickr

August 12, 2019

Thousands of Lower Manhattan tenants may be owed six years’ worth of back rent

In June, the state's Court of Appeals found that apartments at two Lower Manhattan buildings had been unlawfully deregulated by landlords who had collected millions of dollars in benefits under a 1995 tax program. Now, as The City reports, thousands of former or current tenants in the area may be owed up to six years in back rent from landlords who received the tax breaks for years.
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City seeks proposals to develop two East Harlem sites with 350 affordable units and community space

Park Avenue between East 118th and East 119th Streets (top); image via East Harlem Neighborhood Plan.

August 9, 2019

City seeks proposals to develop two East Harlem sites with 350 affordable units and community space

The city's Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) on Thursday issued a request for proposals to develop two city-owned East Harlem sites. The new developments are to include 350 units of affordable housing as well as retail and cultural and community space. The RFPs are part of the East Harlem Housing Plan, which was created with community input received through the East Harlem Neighborhood Planning Process.
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Real estate investors buy $1.2B worth of NYC market-rate rentals with plan to make them affordable

The River Crossing building in Harlem; Photo by CTC Creative

July 31, 2019

Real estate investors buy $1.2B worth of NYC market-rate rentals with plan to make them affordable

A group of real estate investors is buying 2,800 New York City rental apartments for $1.2 billion. But instead of keeping with the industry's custom of converting affordable units into market-rate homes, L+M Development Partners and its partner Invesco Real Estate plan on returning a chunk of those units to long-term regulation. The venture involves the purchase of five former Mitchell-Lama buildings in Manhattan, with four in Harlem and one on Roosevelt Island.
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Chelsea’s first passive house building launches affordable lottery with units from $1,169/month

Rendering via ZH Architects

July 31, 2019

Chelsea’s first passive house building launches affordable lottery with units from $1,169/month

As Cityrealty reported, construction topped out at Flow Chelsea at 211 West 29th Street last fall; the 24-story building's distinguished stone facade and framed windows are all the way up, and as work winds down, an affordable lottery has been announced for 17 of the building's 55 units. Individuals and households earning 70 to 130 percent of the area median income are eligible to apply for studio through three-bedroom apartments with rents that range from $1,169/month for studios to $3,051/month for a two-bedroom. As Chelsea's median rent ranges from $3,112/month for studios to $7,295/month for two-bedrooms (figures per CityRealty listings), this is quite a deal.
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NYC financed a record number of affordable homes for seniors and homeless New Yorkers this fiscal year

Via Creative Commons

July 31, 2019

NYC financed a record number of affordable homes for seniors and homeless New Yorkers this fiscal year

New York City added a record number of supportive housing units and affordable homes for homeless New Yorkers and seniors this fiscal year, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Tuesday. While the total number of affordable units preserved or created is down to 25,299 this fiscal year from last year's 32,444, the city said it still expects to meet the mayor's goal of creating 300,000 affordable homes by 2026.
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How much do you need to earn to afford a two-bedroom in NYC?

Via Pexels

July 26, 2019

How much do you need to earn to afford a two-bedroom in NYC?

Manhattan requires the second-highest income in the country to afford an average two-bedroom apartment. A new report from SmartAsset analyzed how much a household needs to make in order to afford rent in the 25 largest cities in the United States. In Manhattan, New Yorkers would need to earn an annual salary of at least $162,857 to afford the average two-bedroom rent in the borough, currently around $3,800 per month.
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Development with affordable housing and city’s first civil rights museum gets the green light in Harlem

Rendering courtesy of Empire State Development

July 22, 2019

Development with affordable housing and city’s first civil rights museum gets the green light in Harlem

New York’s first civil rights museum will soon land in Harlem, as the city pushes forward with a new $260 million development near the Adam Clayton Powell office building on 125th Street. Empire State Development is planning a 17-story mixed-use building that, in addition to the museum, will house the headquarters of civil rights nonprofit National Urban League (which was founded in the neighborhood in 1910 and currently has offices downtown), office space (including below-market-rate for Harlem-based nonprofits), retail, and 170 affordable apartments targeted to New Yorkers making 30-80 percent of the area median income.
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Construction of affordable housing complex on former juvenile jail site in Hunts Point set to begin

Rendering courtesy of WXY Architecture + Urban Design and Body Lawson Associates

July 19, 2019

Construction of affordable housing complex on former juvenile jail site in Hunts Point set to begin

The first phase of a project that will bring more than 700 units of affordable housing to the Bronx neighborhood of Hunts Point will get underway in the coming weeks, developers announced Tuesday. Dubbed the Peninsula, the mixed-use complex will rise on the site of the former Spofford Juvenile Detention Center, which closed in 2011 after the city recognized its awful conditions and treatment of children. The first phase, costing about $121.5 million, includes the construction of 183 affordable units by 2021.
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First NYCHA federal oversight report recommends using drones to help with building inspections

Via Wikimedia

July 19, 2019

First NYCHA federal oversight report recommends using drones to help with building inspections

Independent federal monitoring of the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) began this year, and the first resulting quarterly analysis is expected to be released as early as Monday, POLITICO reports. The quarterly analysis will provide a summary of progress made to date in addressing issues that have long plagued the public housing authority such as lead paint, mold, broken heating systems and shabby kitchens and bathrooms. According to sources familiar with its content, the report also contains the unexpected suggestion of using drones to inspect building rooftops and facades.
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NY real estate groups file lawsuit challenging new rent laws, calling them ‘unconstitutional’

Via Creative Commons

July 16, 2019

NY real estate groups file lawsuit challenging new rent laws, calling them ‘unconstitutional’

A group of real estate groups and individual property owners filed a lawsuit Monday, challenging newly passed laws that strengthen rent and tenant protections in New York City. Last month, Democratic officials in Albany passed a landmark package of bills that close loopholes that have allowed landlords to increase rents and deregulate stabilized apartments. The lawsuit, filed by the Rent Stabilization Association (RSA), the Community Housing Improvement Program (CHIP), and seven individual property owners, claims that the laws, as well as the entire rent regulation system, violate the 14th and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, as reported by The Real Deal.
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Newly uncovered report finds ties between city’s affordable housing policy and segregation

Image via Wiki Commons

July 16, 2019

Newly uncovered report finds ties between city’s affordable housing policy and segregation

Following years of efforts to keep a report about segregation in the city’s affordable housing lottery system under wraps, a federal court ruling finally led to the report’s release on Monday. As the New York Times first reported, the findings, written by Queens College sociology professor Andrew A. Beveridge, found unequivocal racial disparities at every stage of the process and in every community district where a majority of residents are of one race or ethnicity.
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As plans for 5 WTC push forward, long-time FiDi residents seek more involvement in the process

Image via Flickr

July 15, 2019

As plans for 5 WTC push forward, long-time FiDi residents seek more involvement in the process