RGB’s Preliminary Vote Indicates Consideration of Another Rent Freeze

On May 3, the Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) voted on preliminary increases for next year for the city’s rent-stabilized apartments. The nine-member board voted 5-4 in favor of increases of 0 percent to 2 percent on one-year leases and 0.5 percent to 3.5 percent on two-year leases signed between Oct. 1, 2016, and Sept. 30, 2017.

The range is the same as last year, which led to the first rent freeze in the board’s history for one-year leases and a historically low increase of 2 percent on two-year leases. Last year was the first time all nine members of the board had been appointed by Mayor Bill de Blasio.

The board’s vote was a preliminary step before public hearings and a final decision on June 27. The final rent levels could go up or down, but the board, which represents both tenants and landlords as well as members of the public, has usually stayed within its proposed range of possibilities in the final vote. The new guidelines will be in effect for lease renewals between Oct. 1 and Sept. 30, 2017.