NYC Completes 16,000 Housing Units in Six Months

New housing numbers are bleak. Unless you look at different numbers.

Permits for new residential buildings are down, as are foundation permits (a more reliable metric because it shows intent to actually build something). Based on foundation permits, the Real Estate Board of New York recently found that the city is on track to start construction on fewer than 10,000 housing units this year.

Such stats are often followed by a reminder that the property tax break 421a expired in 2022. If I created a word cloud of my most used phrases in 2023, it would surely include “the expiration of 421a.” But let’s not test that.

Something else I have heard repeatedly from folks in the industry is that the effects of 421a’s expiration won’t be felt for a few years, thanks to a solid pipeline of projects.

That brings me to some rosier stats: More than 16,000 housing units were completed in the first half of this year in NYC, according to the Department of City Planning. That is the highest first-half number since at least 2010. (The agency’s quarterly data only go back that far.)

If completions continue at that pace, the year’s number of finished units would be the most since 1965. But the agency is not planning to rest on its laurels, should it receive any.

“While we’ve made strong progress to bring new housing online so far this year, we have much more to do,” City Planning head Dan Garodnick said in a statement. He pointed to the series of zoning changes — dubbed the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity — which aim “to build a little more housing in every neighborhood.”

He acknowledged that the city needs Albany “to support mixed-income housing development with a new tax-incentive program before our pipeline of housing dries up.”

Absent state-level action, the city has been taking steps to increase housing supply. On Wednesday, the City Council approved a bill that will set five-year housing targets for each community district. The measure will require assessments of progress toward these goals and policy proposals to address shortfalls, but the bill itself does not mandate the numbers be reached.  

What we’re thinking about: What real estate holiday parties are you most looking forward to? Send an invite to [email protected].

A thing we’ve learned: At 5,344 feet, Mount Marcy is New York’s highest point.

Elsewhere in New York…

— Tammy Murphy, who is married to New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, is running for U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez’s seat, Gothamist reports. County-level Democratic groups are already lining up to support her campaign, as Menendez faces federal bribery and corruption charges.

— Attorney General Letitia James is suing PepsiCo, accusing the company of polluting the Buffalo River and failing to warn about how its packaging affects public health and the environment, Politico New York reports. “All New Yorkers have a basic right to clean water, yet PepsiCo’s irresponsible packaging and marketing endanger Buffalo’s water supply, environment and public health,” James said in a statement. The company, which is based in Westchester County, said that it is serious about plastic reduction but that “success in this effort requires collaboration.” 

Closing Time

Residential: The priciest residential closing Wednesday was $18.5 million for a townhouse at 24 West 10th Street in Greenwich Village.

Commercial: The most expensive commercial closing of the day was $19.5 million for multiple condo units at 46-48 Lispenard Street. Manhattan.

New to the Market: The priciest residence to hit the market Wednesday was a condo at 70 Vestry Street in Tribeca asking $9.5 million. Douglas Elliman has the listing.

Breaking Ground: The largest new building filing of the day was for a 3,900-square-foot, two-family dwelling at 57-09 134th Street in Flushing. HiRise Contracting Group filed the permit application. — Jay Young