A Blueprint for Real Change
New Yorkers are painfully familiar with how broken our housing system has become. With a citywide vacancy rate at just 1.4 percent and median rents climbing to $3,500 per month, the dream of finding an affordable home is slipping further away.
State incentives like the 421a tax break have long been used to encourage developers to build more housing. This program offered substantial property tax exemptions for up to 35 years for projects that included affordable units. But when 421a expired, housing construction slowed dramatically. That slowdown highlights a difficult truth: developers need incentives to build, but communities need homes that people can actually afford.
Meanwhile, the city’s housing lottery system is overwhelmed. In 2024, more than six million New Yorkers applied for only ten thousand units. And even then, most apartments target households earning far above the true median income, pushing out the very people the system is supposed to help.
A Path Forward
1. Build Our Own Development Office
Developers are in it to make money. That is their business model. To truly lower costs, the city should create its own development office that builds housing directly. By doing the work ourselves, we can eliminate profit margins and middleman expenses while ensuring that affordability, not luxury, is the priority.
2. Use City-Owned Land for Affordable Housing
New York City owns hundreds of vacant lots, underused properties, and public parcels across the five boroughs. We should put this land to work. Building on city-owned property avoids expensive land purchases, which are often the largest cost in a housing project. It also gives the public more control over what gets built and who it serves. Public land should serve public needs—starting with deeply affordable housing.
3. Cut Fees and Taxes on City-Commissioned Affordable Housing
The cost of construction includes more than materials and labor. Permits, fees, and city taxes add up quickly. When the city commissions affordable housing, we should remove unnecessary financial barriers. By cutting these costs, we can lower rents and build more housing for every dollar spent.
4. Modernize and Expand the Housing Lottery
The lottery system is beginning to evolve, but it needs further reform. We should simplify the application process, provide in-person support for people without internet access, and make sure the income eligibility truly reflects the neighborhoods where the housing is located. Too often, “affordable” housing is priced for people earning much more than the local median.
Why This Matters
A voter-driven housing plan like this would create real relief for:
- Working families trying to stay in the city
- Seniors living on fixed incomes
- Young people trying to live where they work and grew up
It would also show that the city can lead with policy, not just incentives. We do not have to depend entirely on profit-driven developers when the public sector can lead the way with smarter investments.
What You Can Demand at the Ballot Box
Ask every candidate:
- Will you support a city-run development office?
- Will you cut the red tape and taxes that make affordable housing so expensive to build?
- Will you fix the lottery system to prioritize people who actually need the housing?
The Bottom Line
Affordable housing should not be a lottery win. It should be a guarantee that anyone who works or raises a family here has a stable place to live. Voters have the power to demand better. Let’s make affordability a reality in every borough.