Finding an affordable apartment in New York can feel like winning the lottery (sometimes literally), so here’s some news worth knowing about.
The state is putting $872 million toward more than 2,200 affordable homes, and a good chunk of them are right here in the five boroughs.
Governor Kathy Hochul announced the awards on October 30, spreading the money across 12 developments from Queens to Syracuse.
Some are brand-new buildings, while others are older complexes getting long-overdue repairs so the people living there can stay put.
With private funding and other resources added in, the projects are expected to bring in more than $1.5 billion in total investment.
So where are they and when you can expect, you might ask? Here are all the details.
The NYC projects to know
Five of the 12 developments are in the city, adding up to roughly $289 million:
- ICL-Variety Residences, Astoria: 165 new apartments, including 71 set aside as supportive homes for young people aging out of foster care ($103 million).
- Findlay House, the Bronx: a Mitchell-Lama building for seniors getting a full rehab of its 227 apartments, plus 12 brand-new ones ($98.6 million).
- Bridge Inwood, Manhattan: a new 14-story building with 190 apartments, 121 of them supportive homes ($70.3 million).
- Concourse Village, the Bronx: structural repairs at a six-building Mitchell-Lama co-op that’s home to more than 5,000 residents ($14.2 million).
- Franklin Lafayette, Brooklyn: four buildings with 57 apartments preserved as affordable housing ($3 million).
Who these homes are for
Affordability here is based on area median income, or AMI, the yardstick used for most affordable housing in New York.
The Inwood and Bronx senior projects are aimed at households earning up to 60% of AMI, while Astoria goes up to 80% and the Brooklyn buildings up to 100%.
There’s a strong focus on New Yorkers who need a little extra support, too.
Beyond the foster care homes in Astoria, Findlay House is reserving 25 apartments for residents who’ll get on-site services through the state Office for People With Developmental Disabilities.
“Making New York more affordable means building more homes and preserving the housing our communities already depend on,” Hochul said.
Beyond the city
The rest of the money heads north. Highlights include:
- A historic convent in Syracuse being turned into 155 apartments for older adults.
- 296 mixed-income homes next to a Metro-North station in North White Plains.
- A Tarrytown public housing complex being rebuilt with 90 new apartments, where current residents can move back in regardless of income.
All of the developments also have to meet strict sustainability standards, which should mean more energy-efficient buildings and lower utility costs for residents.
The awards are part of the state’s five-year, $25 billion plan to create or preserve 100,000 affordable homes. Nearly 90,000 have been created or preserved so far.
How to actually get one
The announcement doesn’t say when these apartments will be ready or how to apply.
New affordable rentals in the city are usually filled through NYC Housing Connect, so that’s the place to keep an eye on.
In the meantime, there are lotteries open right now, like this one in the Bronx with apartments from $732 a month.
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