Can Successfully Kicked Down Road Past Rent-Controlled Apartments

The Assembly, controlled by Democrats, had pushed to strengthen rent regulations so that fewer apartments would become market rate in future years, but it faced opposition from the Republican-controlled Senate. As part of the agreement, the rent threshold at which a vacant apartment can be deregulated will increase to $2,700, from $2,500. That threshold would rise in the future based on increases in regulated rents approved by the Rent Guidelines Board. The Assembly speaker, Carl E. Heastie, a Bronx Democrat, said the agreement would “slow the loss of affordable housing in the city of New York.” Mr. Cuomo deemed the agreement “a major step forward in terms of tenant protection.”

The New York State Legislature asks, “Why bother fixing the current problems with rent control when you could make someone else do it in four years?”