Mamdani's rent freeze affects 1 million apts—nearly 50% are occupied by foreigners

Of the 1 million rent-stabilized apartments that have gotten rent freezes from socialist New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, nearly half of them are occupied by people who were born outside the US. The revelations come after the new mayor made promises on the campaign trail to freeze rents.

According to the 2023 New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey, the latest data available, 44 percent of all homes that are rent-stabilized in the city were occupied by people born outside of the US, which would translate to approximately 440,000 residences.

Despite critics' warnings of economic ruin for housing in New York if rent control was imposed, Mamdani went ahead with the decision to do so in June. He hailed the Rent Guidelines Board in New York for passing the campaign promise, saying, "This is a historic victory for New York City tenants. After reviewing the data and hearing from New Yorkers across the city, the independent RGB has delivered a freeze on one-year leases, and the first-ever freeze on two-year leases in our city’s history."

He said in a video that all New Yorkers living in rent-stabilized apartments will not see a rent increase in 2027. The board meets on an annual basis to set rents for rent-stabilized apartments, which impacts around 1 million apartments citywide. This year, however, the board voted not to increase the rent at all.

This is despite a report from the board released in April that said that rent-stabilized housing insurance increased by 10.5 percent in 2026 year over year and that other costs increased as well.

The impact of rent control can increase demand as more people are looking for cheaper housing, as well as decrease supply, as more landlords do not see the investment as worth the risk as margins may be tighter, and therefore do not build more housing. Both components, if carried out in this fashion, raise prices for housing that is not rent-controlled.