EFE, New York, United States
Housing prices, both for buying and renting, have soared in New York City by 68% in the last decade, more than in any other U.S. city, according to a new report from the office of the state comptroller, Tom DiNapoli.
This has led New Yorkers to spend an average of 40% of their income on housing, second only to San Francisco. Nationwide, the figure is around 34%.
The main problem, the office explains, is the lack of affordable housing, as many of the most expensive spaces are empty.
According to the report, in 2021, more than half of the studios renting for over $2,300 per month were vacant. 22.4% of those costing between $1,500 and $2,300 were also unoccupied.
The situation has served to accentuate a serious problem of lack of housing and begging, exacerbated now by the arrival of thousands of new migrants to the city.
Although the report only covers the decade from 2012 to 2022 (more than 100,000 new migrants have arrived in the Big Apple since the spring of 2022), it does mention that authorities have been forced to expand rental assistance programs outside the city in response to the rise in homelessness and asylum seekers.
New York State Governor Kathy Hochul has pledged to build 800,000 new homes over the next decade. New York City Mayor Eric Adams wants 500,000 new homes in the city by 2033.
However, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, more than 655,000 units are needed statewide for low-income people alone.
According to the report, in the first eight months of 2023, building permits for new buildings plummeted by more than 80%, and in particular those intended for multi-family housing, which fell by 91%.
