A newly released report from the state comptroller’s office underscores what many New Yorkers already know: Housing in the state is expensive and there’s not enough of it.
The report goes on to show that what little housing there is may be of low quality and comes with housing stressors that may lead to evictions, foreclosures and homelessness.
It also compares New York state’s housing policies to those of other states, and New York does not fare well. One example: New York increased housing stock by 5.7% over the past 10 years, while Texas increased its housing stock by double digits over the same period of time.
“Three million New York households are paying at least 30% or more of their household income for housing,” Comptroller Tom DiNapoli told Capital Tonight, noting that 1 in 5 households are paying 50% or more.
The report says the scale of the problem is larger than one the state itself can handle, but there are steps lawmakers and the governor can take to reduce harm.
“Communities have to be more…welcoming (when it comes to) expanding housing stock,” DiNapoli said, praising Governor Kathy Hochul’s Pro-Housing Communities program. “I do think that’s why the governor’s strategy of trying to find incentives is something local communities will embrace.”
Earlier this month, the comptroller’s office also released its analysis of the governor’s executive budget. One criticism of the spending plan is the governor’s decision to exempt at least $160 million from the state comptroller’s contract oversight and competitive procurement process.
“It’s not the full-scale carve out that we’ve seen in the past,” DiNapoli said, referring to what happened under the Cuomo administration. “It’s more tweaking at the margins.”
But the comptroller’s office is talking with the state Legislature about a restoration of those powers in the enacted budget.
“There are instances that continue to happen where various kinds of procurements that, from our perspective, need oversight, appropriate checks and balances, making sure taxpayers get the best value, making sure there is nothing questionable about a procurement,” DiNapoli explained.