\u201cI love talking about rent, I love talking about housing and particularly as it relates to transparency,\u201d Mohamed told Brooklyn Paper.\n<\/p>\n
Mohamed is the CEO and co-founder of Openigloo<\/a>, a Brooklyn-based startup launched in 2020 that helps renters research buildings and landlords \u2014 and, crucially, determine whether an apartment is rent-stabilized. The idea grew directly out of her own frustrating experience navigating New York City\u2019s rental market.<\/p>\n \u201cI had horrible landlords that never picked up the phone when something went wrong despite me paying way too much rent on time every single month,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n While apartment hunting, Mohamed began standing outside buildings she was considering and asking residents directly about their experiences.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s how I found my perfect rent-stabilized apartment in Brooklyn that I\u2019ve been in for the past eight years,\u201d she continued. \u201cI\u2019m not moving until, you know, I\u2019m in a body bag.\u201d<\/p>\n Today, Openigloo has supported more than three million NYC renters and evolved into a platform where users can research buildings, browse listings and filter specifically for rent-stabilized or good-cause eviction-protected apartments.\u00a0<\/p>\n As the Rent Transparency Act<\/a>\u00a0goes into effect later this week, Mohamed said it will be most useful for people already living in their apartments.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis notice is gonna go up in the common areas of their building that says, \u2018Hey, there are rent-stabilized apartments in this building, and this is how you go about requesting your rental history,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cSo this is gonna be really helpful for people who are already in place.\u201d<\/p>\n But she is less convinced the signage will help renters who are actively apartment hunting.\u00a0 \u201cWhen you\u2019re apartment hunting, you\u2019re not going door to door on the block and looking to see if those notices are gonna be present,\u201d Mohamed said. \u201cThese notices are not going to tell you which units are stabilized. They\u2019re not going to tell you what the legal rent is supposed to be.\u201d<\/p>\n That lack of clarity reflects a deeper issue Mohamed sees daily: many renters don\u2019t know whether their apartment is stabilized. About 35% of users on Openigloo say they are \u201cnot sure\u201d if they live in a rent-stabilized unit.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhich breaks my heart,\u201d she added.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n Mohamad hopes the new law will dispel the myth that rent-stabilized apartments are rare.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \u201cThere is this common myth in New York City that, \u2018Oh, rent-stabilized apartments are really difficult to find,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re not realizing that nearly 50% of the housing in New York City is stabilized. That\u2019s almost a million apartments.\u201d<\/p>\n According to the city\u2019s Rent Guidelines Board<\/a>, \u201cAbout one million of New York City\u2019s 2.3 million rental units are considered to be rent stabilized (with an additional 16,400 rent controlled).\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Still, Mohamad argued that transparency efforts remain too burdensome for tenants. Rent histories are only released by the state\u2019s Division of Housing and Community Renewal to current occupants, through a mailed request tied to a specific apartment.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a very cumbersome process, especially in a day and age where everything can be digitized,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Openigloo has attempted to bridge the gap by crowdsourcing rent histories submitted by renters and building a public map that flags stabilized units and analyzes pricing trends. The results, Mohamed said, can be dramatic.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve come across dozens of cases where renters have been overcharged $1,000, $2,000 and $3,000,\u201d she said. \u201cWe just had a recent success of a renter who got her rent cut from $3,400 to $1,400.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite her platform\u2019s reach, Mohamed believes the responsibility shouldn\u2019t fall on renters alone.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n \u201cWhy isn\u2019t [the state Division of Homes and Community Renewal<\/a>] the one that\u2019s auditing and flagging and finding those mistakes in real time?\u201d she said. \u201cThe onus remains on the renter to be able to enforce and uphold their rights.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"brooklyn](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1767112757_95_park-slope-arrow-linen-467-prospect-avenue-dec2023-sdevries-9-scaled-1.webp.webp\"){kind=icon}
The Rent Transparency Act, which will go into effect on Jan. 1, will help tenants fight illegal rent hikes, demand better living conditions and restore illegally deregulated units. File photo by Susan de Vries<\/p>\n
\n![\"Sandy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1767112757_745_07272022_PF_Greenbrook_Canvassing_10-scaled-1.webp.webp\")
Sandy Nurse, council member from District 37, introduced the Rent Transparency Act, which was passed in May 2025. File photo by Paul Frangipane\n<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1767112757_747_downtown-brooklyn-smith-fulton-street-buildings-jan2025-sdevries-1.webp.webp\")
Finding a unit\u2019s rent history can be burdensome for tenants, Mohamad said. File photo by Susan De Vries<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1767112757_338_Screen-Shot-2025-05-28-at-12.11.00-PM.jpg\")
The Rent Transparency Act, introduced by Council Member Sandy Nurse (center), empowers tenants to fight illegal rent hikes, fight for better conditions and bring illegally destabilized units back into compliance. Photo courtesy Council Member Sandy Nurse<\/p>\n