It’s no secret that rent in New York City is expensive compared to other parts of the country. That’s why it’s always jaw-dropping to hear a story of someone paying much less than market-rate rent here. Remember how Carrie Bradshaw only paid $700 for her iconic Upper East Side pad in “Sex And The City”? That amount was still considered cheap in the late 1990s! The reason? Her place was probably a rent-stabilized apartment. Unfortunately, those highly coveted, affordable units seem like a distant dream. But they do exist. Is your NYC apartment rent-stabilized? Here’s how to find out.
Table of Contents
Manhattan Rentals Under $2,500 On StreetEasy Article continues below
Gramercy Park
216 East 17th Street
$2,300No Fee
Studio |
1
Lenox Hill
1380 York Avenue
$2,247No Fee
Studio |
1
Hell’s Kitchen
457 West 50th Street
$2,475No Fee
Studio |
1
Upper West Side
303 West 92nd Street
$2,425No Fee
Studio |
1
Central Harlem
253 West 134th Street
$2,300No Fee
Studio |
1
Central Harlem
48 West 138th Street
$1,900No Fee
Studio |
1
Murray Hill
647 Second Avenue
$2,150No Fee
1 |
1
Hamilton Heights
512 West 151st Street
$2,250No Fee
1 |
1
Hamilton Heights
627 West 142nd Street
$1,875No Fee
Studio |
1
Washington Heights
75 Fort Washington Avenue
$2,050No Fee
2 |
1
Lower East Side
110 Ludlow Street
$2,004No Fee
1 |
1
Lenox Hill
439 East 74th Street
$2,450No Fee
Studio |
1
How Many Rent-Stabilized Units Are in NYC?
A New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey dating back to 2017, revealed there are close to 1 million rent-stabilized units in NYC. At the time of this writing, StreetEasy offered 220 listings with the term “rent-stabilized” in the apartment description. Here are tips for how to find a rent-stabilized apartment.
Benefits of a Rent-Stabilized Apartment
There are many reasons to find out if your NYC apartment is rent-stabilized in addition to affordability:
Landlords can only increase the rent by a percentage determined by the Rent Guidelines Board.
Rent is not dependent on your income level, apartment size, or the number of residents.
Landlords must renew leases every year, increasing housing security for rent-stabilized tenants.
Tenants in rent-stabilized apartments can pass on the unit to family members in some cases.
Brooklyn Rentals Under $2,500 On StreetEasy Article continues below
Flatbush
124 Erasmus Street
$2,399No Fee
1 |
1
Prospect Lefferts Gardens
181 Clarkson Avenue
$1,950No Fee
1 |
1
Crown Heights
1261 Pacific Street
$2,225No Fee
Studio |
1
Bay Ridge
130 Bay Ridge Parkway
$1,850No Fee
1 |
1
Prospect Lefferts Gardens
384 Rutland Road
$2,150No Fee
1 |
1
Crown Heights
286 Eastern Parkway
$2,412No Fee
1 |
1
Bushwick
950 Hart Street
$2,500No Fee
Studio |
1
Carroll Gardens
306 Bond Street
$2,450No Fee
Studio |
1
Midwood
1375 Ocean Avenue
$2,000No Fee
1 |
1
East Flatbush
1630 Brooklyn Avenue
$2,499No Fee
2 |
1
Flatbush
986 Rogers Avenue
$2,250No Fee
Studio |
1
Weeksville
239 Utica Avenue
$2,299No Fee
1 |
1
How To Find Out if Your Apartment Is Rent-Stabilized
Generally speaking, an NYC apartment is rent-stabilized if it is in a building that contains six or more units, was built before 1974, and isn’t a co-op or condo. However, it’s important to remember that prior to the 2019 legislation, units would fall out of rent stabilization once they hit a certain rent threshold. So, to find out if your unit is rent-stabilized, contact NYS Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) via phone or web portal and request a rent history.
Reviewing your rent history is a great way to find out if your apartment is rent-stabilized, but it also offers other benefits. For example, a rent history will help you find out if your landlord is charging you more than your apartment’s legal rent if it is stabilized, or if they were granted a rent increase for a Major Capital Improvement (MCI) or Individual Apartment Improvement (IAI), that they did not actually conduct to destabilize a unit. Another tool you can use is the Rent Guidelines Board’s list of rent-stabilized buildings in New York City. Buildings are organized by borough and zip code, and the documents can be downloaded and searched by keyword, address, etc.
Queens Rentals Under $2,500 On StreetEasy Article continues below
Flushing
132-24 Maple Avenue
$1,875No Fee
1 |
1
Ridgewood
1916 Harman Street
$2,500No Fee
1 |
1
Astoria
27-35 21st Street
$2,204No Fee
Studio |
1
Rego Park
98-19 64th Avenue
$2,050No Fee
1 |
1
Ditmars-Steinway
21-23 27th Street
$2,300No Fee
1 |
1
Woodside
53-31 Woodside Avenue
$2,400No Fee
1 |
1
Astoria
31-67 37th Street
$1,899No Fee
1 |
1
Woodside
69-02 Woodside Avenue
$1,750No Fee
1 |
1
Ditmars-Steinway
21-14 29th Street
$2,399No Fee
1 |
1
Astoria
31-76 46th Street
$2,000No Fee
1 |
1
Forest Hills
109-20 Queens Boulevard
$2,450No Fee
1 |
1
Rego Park
61-25 98th Street
$2,400No Fee
1 |
1
Are New Rent-Stabilized Apartments Being Built?
The short answer is “yes.”
“Changes to the inventory of rent-stabilized apartments are published every year by the NYC Rent Guidelines Board,” according to Sam Himmelstein, a tenants’ rights lawyer with Himmelstein, McConnell, Gribben, Donoghue & Joseph. About 10,000 rent-stabilized units were created in 2020 due to the 421-a program, which in simple terms is a real estate tax exemption for new construction. This program defers tax payments for developers that include a certain percentage of affordable housing units in a building. (A common split is 80/20, with affordable apartments in the minority. Abatements range in length — 10, 15, 20 years, etc. — and generally, the rent-stabilized status remains, even after those abatements expire.)
In addition, a small number of stabilized units are created due to the J-51 program, which is similar to 421-a but applies to buildings that have been renovated, as opposed to newly constructed. Still more rent-stabilized apartments are created when loft spaces are converted to contain multiple units, or when apartments leave the Mitchell-Lama program, a city- and state-run program for moderate and middle-income families.
How to Find a Rent-Stabilized Apartment in NYC
So, how do you find a rent-stabilized apartment in NYC?
“Renters can apply to win affordable apartments, which are mostly rent-stabilized, through the NYC housing lottery’s website, Housing Connect,” says Adjina Dekidjiev, a broker for Warburg Realty. Note that applicants must meet income requirements (these are capped) and that the application process requires significant documentation and often, time.
“You can also work with a real estate broker who can research them and might know about off-market apartments,” says Dekidjiev.