![\"NYC](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/312-West-43rd-Street-Apartments-Exterior-Rendering.jpeg\" "\\"NYC")
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New rental building The Ellery at 312 West 43rd Street was financed by the A.F.L-C.I.O Housing Investment Trust, which finances middle-income housing built by union employees. Rendering courtesy of the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development.<\/p>\n
New York City Comptroller Mark Levine plans to invest $4 billion from the city\u2019s public pension funds for affordable housing development. Levine on Thursday<\/a> unveiled the \u201cNYC Housing Investment Initiative,\u201d which will more than double the funds\u2019 current real estate portfolio and help finance thousands of new homes through mixed-income projects, office-to-residential conversions, and renovations, as first reported by the New York Times<\/a>. The plan calls for roughly $1 billion in annual pension investments over the next four years.<\/p>\n The initiative seeks to address NYC\u2019s current housing crisis. As of February 2024, the rental vacancy rate had fallen to 1.4 percent, the lowest level in more than 50 years<\/a>. Data from Pew <\/a>also shows that the city\u2019s housing stock grew by only 4 percent between 2010 and 2018.<\/p>\n As part of the initiative\u2019s first round of investments, Levine has directed the Bureau of Asset Management to bring $750 million in investments to the boards for approval to create new mixed-income affordable housing, preserve existing affordable homes, and support office-to-residential conversions.<\/p>\n He has called for a $500 million expansion of the Public Private Apartment Rehabilitation (PPAR) program to support the construction, preservation, and rehabilitation of housing across NYC and surrounding counties. Levine also announced a new 36-month rate lock and 40-year amortization schedule for both preservation and new construction.<\/p>\n Additionally, Levine recommended further investment for approval in the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust to finance large-scale multifamily and affordable housing projects in NYC using union labor. The AFL-CIO trust specifically finances middle-income housing built and operated by union workers, according to the Times.<\/p>\n Investments will require approval from each pension fund\u2019s board of trustees.<\/p>\n \u201cToo many New Yorkers are struggling just to keep a roof over their heads. Solving this crisis takes action on all fronts. We\u2019ve advanced critical zoning changes, but without financing, housing doesn\u2019t get built,\u201d Levine said. <\/p>\n \u201cThe NYC Housing Investment Initiative is about closing that gap, delivering the homes New Yorkers need, and making sound investments for the NYC retirement systems,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n NYC currently has five pension funds, which provide retirement benefits to police officers, teachers, firefighters, and other city workers. Totaling roughly $320 billion in assets, the funds invest in real estate across the city and around the world, as well as in stocks, bonds, and private equity.<\/p>\n Since the early 1990s, these investments have helped create or preserve 199,000 housing units, according to a press release. The new capital infusion is expected to support the creation or rehabilitation of thousands more units.<\/p>\n Previous projects funded through the program include Lily House, a Bronx building for domestic violence survivors, and The Rise, a Brooklyn building that houses formerly incarcerated women, according to the Times.<\/p>\n Pension funds are required to make investments that maximize returns, which has historically made affordable housing a less attractive option. Investors have often favored market-rate projects, where higher rents typically generate stronger returns.<\/p>\n