Following up on the rent freeze vote, David Brand, housing reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, shares his reporting on the recent tally of rent-stabilized units sitting empty in New York City.
Photo: NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 11: A ‘for rent’ sign hangs from an apartment building in the East Village neighborhood on May 11, 2026 in New York City. A New York City board that sets the rent for city-subsidized apartments voted last Thursday night to set a preliminary rent adjustment of 0% to 2% for one-year leases and 0% to 4% for two-year leases, angering many of the city’s landlords. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist, made reducing New York City’s high housing costs a key campaign pledge. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)