June 27, 2025
For once, the leading voices in New York City politics are singing a similar tune: the city needs a massive increase in housing. From former Governor Andrew Cuomo to progressive frontrunners like Zohran Mamdani, the mayoral candidates agree—NYC has a supply issue. The difference? Where and how they plan to solve it.
As a real estate professional in this city, I can tell you—this is a major shift. Not long ago, suggesting new development (especially in wealthier or low-density neighborhoods) could get you labeled anti-community. But in 2025, housing abundance has gone mainstream.
Most candidates are proposing to build around 500,000 new units over the next decade. Some, like Zellnor Myrie, want to shoot even higher—up to 700,000 homes. These numbers sound great, especially when rents continue to climb and vacancy rates remain painfully low. But where these units would go is where the debate begins.
Some candidates, like Mamdani and Myrie, want to increase density near mass transit and rezone affluent neighborhoods that have long resisted change. Cuomo, on the other hand, is playing it safer—preferring to keep low-density areas untouched and focus on already-dense parts of the city. As someone who works on the ground, I can see both the political logic and the missed opportunity in that approach.
Myrie stands out for actually naming locations: he wants 85,000 new homes in Midtown, more in industrial areas of Brooklyn and Queens, and a controversial—but potentially powerful—plan to rebuild aging NYCHA complexes into mixed-income housing.
It’s ambitious, and it could bring real relief to families stuck in crumbling buildings. But it’s a hard sell in communities that have every right to be skeptical of promises made about public-private redevelopment.
One of the key differences in these platforms is between short-term relief and long-term solutions. Mamdani is riding high in the polls thanks to a proposed citywide rent freeze for the 2.5 million rent-stabilized tenants.
It’s a policy that directly speaks to what many New Yorkers are feeling now—but as we know in this business, freezing rent doesn’t fix the root problem. We still need more inventory.
Rent freezes might give people breathing room, but only supply—of all types—will create lasting affordability. Myrie is one of the few trying to take both approaches seriously, and for that, he deserves credit.
All of this matters immensely for the real estate industry. Where the next mayor chooses to push development could reshape the market for decades. Will they confront zoning limits in neighborhoods that need to share in the city's growth? Or will they retreat to what's politically safe and let the housing crisis worsen?
As someone helping buyers, sellers, and investors navigate this market every day, I’ll be watching closely. Policy shapes possibility. And for the sake of our city’s future, we need leadership that isn’t afraid to build smart, fair, and at scale.
Disclaimer: This content is meant for informational purposes only and is not intended to be construed as financial, tax, legal, or insurance advice.
