it is a yearly thing which is voted on by the rent board, which is composed of 9 members who are appointed by the mayor. Mamdani’s ability to appoint members who would vote for a rent freeze depends on how many members Eric Adams appoints before his term is up. Once appointed, rent board member terms are 4 years, I think. I’m pretty sure that new mayors can’t just fire current rent board members whose terms haven’t expired. Again, the rent can only be frozen for one year at a time. And if not completely frozen, the board can decide on a lower or higher % rent increase.
This only affects rent-stabilized apartments, not market rate apartments. Personally, I live in a prewar, rent-stabilized apartment. And my rent is not cheap. But it is much lower than market rate. I would certainly appreciate another rent freeze for a year or two.
That said, I understand that owners have costs. Mortgages, property tax, maintenance. And if a landlord can’t pay their mortgage and goes into foreclosure, that is not going to be a good situation for those rent-stabilized tenants.
One thing is sure: We do not need any more unaffordable housing built.
The MTA and free buses for all is another story. I do not see that happening. We already have half-fare for seniors, disabled, low-income peeps. If the buses were suddenly all free, we would end up having far less frequent buses/service. City buses were free during the pandemic as a way to help essential workers and keep bus drivers safer. It was never supposed to be a forever thing.
