Mayor De Blasio urges city to consider rent freezes in regulated buildings

NEW YORK - Mayor Bill de Blasio says he is working to keep roofs over the head of the more than 2,000,000 New Yorkers who live in rent-stabilized apartments. 

“I have made the decision that we will proceed with the Rent Guidelines Board process,” De Blasio said. “...but I am calling upon the Rent Guidelines Board to issue a rent freeze.”

A freeze means tenants would still have to pay rent, but would not see an increase. The Guidelines Board is a group of people appointed by the Mayor but who make their own independent decisions about increases for rent-stabilized units.

But while tenant advocates say that the move is a good start and will help New Yorkers put food on the table, landlords say that a freeze would not be fair.

“Property owners are in the same boat as the tenants,” said Christopher Athineos, whose family has owned properties in Brooklyn since the 1960s. “We’re all suffering, our expenses continue to go up, there’s no talk about freezing or rolling back our property taxes.”

A spokesperson for the Mayor says that the Rent Guidelines Board will have its first meeting on the matter within the next two weeks.