Rx To Poison the Housing Market

City Council members just put off a show hearing set for Tuesday on two housing issues that the state controls. Wise move: Their goal was to win progressive cred — but a hearing would only expose their gross ignorance (or cynicism) instead.

The issues remain very real: One is the deceptively named “Good Cause Eviction” bill; the other, renewal of a half-century-old tax break (called 421-a) that encourages developers to build affordable housing.

The council members want Albany to pass the Good Cause bill, which would block landlords from ever evicting tenants, except under the narrowest of circumstances. It would also, in effect, cap rent hikes (at 3%, or 150% of the region’s Consumer Price Index) on every apartment in the state, even ones rented by wealthy tenants.

This would discourage building new rental housing, make landlords think twice about who they rent to (perhaps for life), trigger vastly higher rents for vacant units and force many building owners to skimp on maintenance and upgrades. It’s a big loser for most tenants.

Failure to renew 421-a, which expires next month, would steer builders to focus solely on luxury units, so they can make a fair return on their investments. Progressives hate seeing developers get a break, but without the abatement, city levies and other costs make it financially impossible for landlords to offer below-market units.

Like passing Good Cause, letting the break die will poison the housing market.

Since the Legislature, not the City Council, controls both issues, Tuesday’s hearing was really just theater. At most, it was a bid to get the two issues linked: Renew 421-a and pass Good Cause — or kill both.

If state lawmakers and Gov. Hochul want to encourage housing development, they’ll resist such linkage. The Good Cause bill should die, and the tax break should live on — period. Any other combo will only choke New York’s supply of affordable housing, at tenants’ expense.