WORLD WORLDWIDE USA New York NY New York City NYC thecity THE CITY - THE CITY Scoop: Landlords Demand ‘Double Digit Rent Increase’ After Dismal Housing Report

 

View this email in your browser Dear New Yorkers, Ah, spring. Flowers are blooming, birds are chirping — and we’ve officially begun the annual procession of reports, debates and raucous hearings that culminates in June with a vote to set rent increases for regulated apartments. The first big step in that process came yesterday with the release of a report by the Rent Guidelines Board that showed signs of flagging financial health for buildings with rent-regulated units. The board found that net operating income for landlords dropped by 9.1% between 2020 and 2021, while expenses rose by slightly more than 3%. Meanwhile the share of buildings in financial distress rose to almost 9% in 2021 from about 6% the previous year. Landlord groups seized on the report to call for a large, possibly double-digit, increase in rents. Tenant groups disputed the report’s significance since it showed the biggest decline occurred in Manhattan buildings in highly desirable neighborhoods, while pointing to new census data — also released Thursday — that showed the borough’s population rebounding. Read more here. Some other items of note: The failure to make repairs — such as fixing hopper doors that caused chimney-effect fires in trash chutes — contributed to explosive fires that wound up killing two tenants, including a 6-year-old boy, at New York City Housing Authority complexes, according to a Department of Investigation report released Thursday. The former president from Queens is now the first president to face criminal charges. Honk honk, toot toot — big wage boosts are coming through for Staten Island Ferry engineers. The city comptroller said the ferry workers are each entitled to at least six figures in back pay, and higher hourly rates. City officials on Thursday inked a five-year contract with the insurance giant Aetna that paves the way to switch the city’s 250,000 retired employees to a privately run Medicare Advantage plan. The deal is key to locking in an estimated $600 million in annual savings agreed to by municipal unions to help pay for wage boosts and benefits. But it’s faced vehement opposition from retirees who are vowing to challenge the switch in court. Surprise: Despite financial industry layoffs and a banking crisis, Wall Street remains in far better shape than many expected according to new bonus figures and employment figures. Watch the journey of oyster shells from your plate to New York Harbor on our newsroom’s TikTok page. Tomorrow is the deadline for Albany to hammer out a budget. In case you missed it, here are the big things lawmakers are considering and a guide on the many proposals to save the MTA’s finances. New Yorkers have until May 31 to submit the names of loved ones to MISSING THEM, THE CITY’s COVID-19 memorial project; send a note to memorial@thecity.nyc. May 31 is also the last day to see the MISSING THEM photo exhibit in The Bronx and Queens. See how New York City is doing with our newsroom’s economic recovery tracker. For the latest local numbers on COVID-19 hospitalizations, positivity rates and more, check our coronavirus tracker. Weather scoop by New York Metro Weather Friday’s Weather Rating: 4/10. Clouds increase as the day goes on today, with highs in the upper 50s. Showers become more likely by late afternoon and continue into tonight. The vibes are turning unsettled again! THE KICKER: Make a splash! Monday is the last day you can sign your child up for free swimming lessons from the Parks Department, to take place during the public school spring break, April 10-14. Lessons are open to kids from age 6 to 17. Sign up here. Thanks, as always, for reading. Make it a great Friday. Love, THE CITY P.S. If you liked something about today's newsletter, or didn't, let us know at zshah@thecity.nyc Always free. Always NYC. Support our journalism today. Copyright © 2023 THE CITY, All rights reserved.