The Progressive Caucus condemns a recent advertisement by the Rent Stabilization Association claiming that “Mayor de Blasio’s bad housing policies are bad for affordable housing.” The work of this Administration and Council has been laser-focused on combatting displacement and preserving the 1 million rent stabilized units in the City. These efforts were exemplified by vehement advocacy to renew and strengthen the rent regulations that protect tenants from unreasonable rent hikes. This included calls to eliminate loopholes such as the deregulation of units due to temporary vacancy and burdensome fees that are used to harass and evict tenants.
The City’s leadership recognizes that many residents are under tremendous financial strain. Last year Mayor de Blasio noted that ‘over 56 percent of New Yorkers are ‘rent burdened’ and struggling’, which is why the historic decision by the Rent Guidelines Board to freeze rent was a sign of real relief ‘for New Yorkers living in rent-stabilized apartments’ whose leases would not feature a burdensome rent hike.
With this propaganda campaign, the Rent Stabilization Association is choosing to ignore these actions and many other programs that include millions of dollars for anti-eviction legal services and even greater investments to reduce homelessness with shelter improvements and housing vouchers. The goals of these ads are clearly intended to protect the interests of “the real estate industry,” as stated on their own website, and not to defend the rights of working class New Yorkers.