In a wide-ranging interview with Fortune<\/a> published Wednesday, the Pershing Square Capital Management founder argued that government policy is driving up housing and energy costs in New York.<\/p>\n “The answer isn\u2019t socialism \u2013 socialism is a disaster,” Ackman said. “Watch what happens to New York City if [Mayor Zohran] Mamdani succeeds in implementing these plans.”<\/p>\n Ackman said New York\u2019s housing shortage<\/a> stems in part from rules that make it difficult and costly for developers to build.<\/p>\n BILL ACKMAN SLAMS CALIFORNIA WEALTH TAX AS \u2018EXPROPRIATION\u2019 OF PRIVATE PROPERTY<\/a><\/p>\n Pershing Square Capital Management CEO Bill Ackman is pictured in New York on April 29, 2026. Ackman argued that government policy is driving up housing and energy costs in New York. (John Lamparski\/Bloomberg via Getty Images)<\/p>\n “It\u2019s so high because left-wing mayors have made it very difficult for developers to build here, and Mamdani<\/a>, by freezing rents, is just going to make the problem worse,” he said.<\/p>\n New York City\u2019s Rent Guidelines Board voted in June to freeze rents on one- and two-year leases for rent-stabilized apartments.<\/p>\n Ackman argued that rent controls can shift more costs onto tenants in market-rate units. He also claimed roughly 60,000 apartments have been pulled from the market because landlords cannot recover renovation costs under current regulations.<\/p>\n “If you make it hard to build where people want to live, and you don\u2019t let landlords recover renovation costs, they\u2019ll pull units off the market,” Ackman said.<\/p>\n He pointed to Austin, Texas, as an example of a city where increased construction helped bring rents down.<\/p>\n Ackman also blamed New York\u2019s energy policies for adding to residents\u2019 cost of living.<\/p>\n “Why are energy costs so high in New York State? Because we\u2019ve shut down nuclear power, it takes 15 years to get a pipeline approved, and we\u2019ve banned fracking \u2013 so we\u2019re importing natural gas from Pennsylvania,” he said. “That\u2019s just bad policy, and we can fix a lot of it with better policy.”<\/p>\n Ackman then turned to taxes<\/a>, arguing that New York should encourage wealthy residents and businesses to invest in the city rather than risk driving them elsewhere.<\/p>\n “You want people like Ken Griffin locating Citadel here \u2013 spending $250 million on an apartment, because that purchase makes a building economically viable, which creates construction jobs and brings in wealthy residents who pay taxes,” Ackman said.\u00a0<\/p>\n BILL ACKMAN MAKES $2B GAMBLE ON MARK ZUCKERBERG’S AI PIVOT WITH MASSIVE META STOCK PURCHASE<\/a><\/p>\n New York City\u2019s Rent Guidelines Board voted in June to freeze rents on one- and two-year leases for rent-stabilized apartments. (Angela Weiss\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n He added, “You don\u2019t want to discourage people like Elon Musk from locating their businesses here.”<\/p>\n The Mamdani administration pushed back, citing recent job growth, investment and stronger commercial real estate activity.<\/p>\n “New York City is the global capital of finance, home to the world’s second-largest tech sector, and a growing hub for healthcare and the green economy,” a spokesperson for Mamdani’s office told FOX Business.\u00a0<\/p>\n The administration said the city added 21,700 jobs through June, while New York City companies raised $21.2 billion in venture capital this year, up 102% from the same period in 2025. It also pointed to stronger office leasing, higher transit ridership and Broadway attendance above pre-pandemic levels.<\/p>\n “By any metric, New York City’s economy is in one of the strongest positions it’s ever been under Mayor Mamdani. We look forward to continuing to grow the economy while ensuring that that growth benefits working New Yorkers,” the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n Ackman has previously been critical of New York City\u2019s new pied-\u00e0-terre surcharge, which applies to certain high-value properties that are not used as an owner\u2019s primary residence.<\/p>\n He also criticized California\u2019s Proposition 40, which could impose a one-time tax equal to 5% of the net worth of billionaires who were California residents on Jan. 1, 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n STEVE HILTON WARNS CALIFORNIA ECONOMY WILL ‘ABSOLUTELY COLLAPSE’ UNDER ‘INSANE’ BILLIONAIRE TAX<\/a><\/p>\n New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks during a news conference on June 4, 2026. Ackman has previously been critical of New York City\u2019s new pied-\u00e0-terre surcharge. (Adam Gray\/Bloomberg via Getty Images)<\/p>\n “Look at what\u2019s happening in California right now with the wealth tax \u2013 they say it\u2019s \u2018one time,\u2019 but it\u2019s never one time,” he said.<\/p>\n![\"Pershing](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/bill-ackman-pershing-.jpg\")
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