There is a severe shortage of affordable housing throughout New York State, from Buffalo to Montauk.
According to the Out of Reach, a report by the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, someone making the minimum wage today would have to work 99 hours a week. Rising inflation has pushed up home prices alongside stagnating incomes.
Housing Justice for All’s campaign coordinator Cea Weaver argued that legislation is needed to ensure that everyone has a safe and affordable place to live.
Weaver explained that passing “good-cause eviction tenant protections” would be the “most important thing New York needs to do right now.”
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This would mean that landlords would need a strong reason to pursue an eviction and that rent increases of more than 1.5 times the rate of inflation would be illegal. Currently, the figure is at around 10%.
She added that safeguards are essential to maintaining peace in a community. In 2019, the Good Cause Eviction Bill was first introduced to the legislature; it has since been reintroduced.
Landlords’ rights were cited as an argument against the law. The legislation has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee for consideration.
New affordable housing construction is a concern in addition to legislative solutions. New York City Mayor Eric Adams advocated turning vacant stores into low-cost homes earlier this year.
New York City Councilman Rafael Salamanca Jr. thinks it would provide a large amount of affordable housing.
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“We can create up to 20,000 units of housing in Manhattan alone and other parts,” Salamanca argued. We have the capacity to build up to 20,000 units, which would provide homes for roughly 40,000 New Yorkers.
As Douglas Elliman, a real estate company, reports, Manhattan rental prices will reach an average of $5,000 in 2022, and the need for relief from the scarcity of affordable housing is growing.
There are a lot of potential responses to the issue, but none of them are foolproof.
Director of organizing and advocacy for the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development Emily Goldstein has stated that certain factors must be included in the discussion of affordable housing.
Goldstein recommended “being really honest about who needs what kind of affordable housing” as the first step. Then we should direct our policies and our budgetary resources in that direction.
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She also mentioned the need of considering tenants’ rights when making zoning decisions. Possible relief is on the horizon, but it will take time to manifest.
In her State of the State address in 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul proposed building 800,000 units of affordable housing throughout the state over the next decade.
