Landlords sue over rent freeze on New York City stabilized units

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani ran and won on bringing affordability and stronger rent stabilization to the city’s residents. Landlords are having none of it. They sued in Staten Island court over a recent rent freeze, claiming the decision process was rigged. The lawsuit comes nearly a month after the Rent Guidelines Board froze rents on roughly 1 million rent-stabilized units across the city for up to two years. Mamdani celebrated the freeze as a victory for the tenants he promised to help in his affordability platform. Landlords are asking the court to annul the freeze, declare the board’s decision unlawful and send the matter back for a new determination that weighs the statutory factors they say were ignored. They’ve also requested expedited discovery and an evidentiary hearing to examine how the board reached its decision. This latest lawsuit emerges as a broadside just as Mamdani’s administration seeks to show success on the housing supply front. In addition to promising strict rent stabilization, he has been cutting red tape and executing on zoning changes from the previous administration to accelerate housing construction. Another legal round on rent stabilization This...