#NYChousing Day 9: 421-A Property Tax Benefit

Should the next mayor offer to cap the property tax levy on 421-a rental properties in order to preserve the affordable units within those buildings?

WHY IT MATTERS: Offering tax breaks to real estate developers may incentivize the construction or preservation of affordable housing, but such subsidies can also deprive the city of much-needed revenue. As the city faces significant budgetary challenges, policymakers must ensure that tax subsidy programs like 421-a are structured as efficiently as possible.

Read the #NYChousing 421-a issue brief or the entire #NYChousing series to date.

The #NYChousing series identifies 10 key affordable housing issues that will confront the next mayor of New York City, aiming to inform the public about the tradeoffs involved to the public debate by providing an objective analysis of the pros, cons, and questions the mayoral candidates should address head-on. Between August 20th and August 29th we will be releasing daily issue briefs about these key issues (see the topic schedule here.). We will also be hosting daily twitter conversations on the topic of the day at 11 AM ET. Follow us on Twitter at @FurmanCenterNYU.