Require More Affordable Housing for Lowest-Income New Yorkers
Enacted on Jul 31, 2026Signed into law by the Mayor.
Signed into Law
Local Law 2026/066
✦ Plain-Language Summary
This law requires that at least 50% of new rental housing funded by the city must be affordable to extremely low-income and very low-income households, with at least 30% reserved for the very poorest New Yorkers. The rules take effect in July 2027, giving developers currently seeking city funding time to adjust their plans. If federal housing funding is significantly cut, the city has the flexibility to temporarily pause these requirements.
Details
- Introduced
- Oct 29, 2025
- Passed Council
- Jan 29, 2026
- Enacted
- Jan 29, 2026
- Body
- Committee on Land Use
- Type
- Introduction
- Status
- Enacted
Sponsors (9)
Official Description
This bill would require that a minimum percentage of rental housing financed by the City are affordable to households with the least means to afford housing. Of the new affordable housing financed by the Department of Housing and Preservation Development, known as HPD, 50% would have to be affordable to extremely and very low-income households, with at least 30% of the total affordable to extremely low-income households. The bill includes several separate exemptions to these minimum percentages, based on either their programmatic requirements, site constraints, or their stage in the pre-development process. Although the bill would go into effect immediately, the requirements would not apply until July 1, 2027, so that affordable housing projects currently seeking financing can proceed with their applications. The legislation would also include an ability for HPD to suspend the targets if federal resources relied on to finance affordable housing are significantly decreased.