NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — The New York City Rent Guidelines Board is voting on a possible rent freeze on Thursday evening, either fulfilling or putting a stop to one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani's most prominent campaign promises.
The slogan "freeze the rent" was a rallying cry of Mamdani's ambitious affordability agenda during his 2025 campaign, and the board's initial proposal last month of a 0-2% increase on one-year leases and a 0-4% increase on two-year leases indicates a glimmer of deliverance.
Joanne Grell, a tenant organizer with Community Action for Safe Apartments, told 1010 WINS that she feels optimistic going into the vote, knowing that they already are working in a range that includes 0%.
"It is everything that we've been organizing for," she said. "It is everything we've been fighting for, and I have a feeling that we're going to win."
On the other side of the aisle, CEO of the New York Apartment Association Kenny Burgos shared his belief that a rent freeze would lead to disaster, leaving landlords financially crushed and tenants with "subpar and low-quality housing."
"It is going to destroy more of this housing stock that the Rent Guidelines Board already acknowledges is in distress and, to me, is arguably one of the worst policy choices that the mayor can make," he said.
Typically comprised of nine members, the votes will be cast without Christina Smyth, who resigned Thursday morning over claims that Thursday's outcome "was decided last year on the campaign trail." Smyth was reappointed last year by former Mayor Eric Adams to represent the interests of landlords, and said in her resignation statement that the six-of-nine board members appointed by Mamdani made predetermined decisions immune to the facts gathered through the board's hearings, reports, public comments and data.
"The Rent Guidelines Board has stopped being a fact-finding body. It has become a body that starts with an answer and vibe codes its way backward to justify it," she wrote.
While it is not clear if Smyth will be replaced prior to the vote, the board would still have a quorum to move forward. The vote will take place at El Museo del Barrio in East Harlem at 7 p.m., and rallies outside the location are already planned.
