Inside Mamdani’s Plan to Reform Rental Applications

Does Mayor Zohran Mamdani want tenants to be rent-burdened?

It’s not a trick question.

Of course he’d prefer that tenants’ rent plus utilities not exceed 30 percent of their income, which is the definition of rent-burdened.

At the same time, the mayor doesn’t want landlords to reject apartment applicants for having annual income less than 40 times the monthly rent. That’s the same 30 percent threshold (but more lenient because it doesn’t include utilities).

How do I know the mayor wants tenants to lease apartments that make them rent-burdened from Day One? It’s right there in his Rental Ripoff Report:

“Potential changes may include that landlords only require either a credit check … or salary disclosure meeting the 40x rent requirement, but not both,” it says on page 53. “Giving tenants and owners multiple ways to establish prospective ability to pay rent will reduce barriers that renters identified to seeking new housing.”

I agree that a no-exceptions test is unfair to rental applicants, but I disagree with Mamdani’s proposed remedy.

Lots of tenants reliably pay rent even though it exceeds 30 percent of their income. Maybe they limit their spending in other areas to prioritize keeping their apartment.

A fiscally disciplined person can pull that off, especially in a city where car ownership is unnecessary. A personal vehicle costs about $1,000 a month and creates a risk of financial shocks that can leave people homeless.

Meanwhile, some tenants pass the 40x income test yet miss rent payments. They might be compulsive shoppers or gamblers, take lavish vacations or otherwise live beyond their means. Maybe their income is garnished for child support. Or it’s intermittent, and they fail to set aside rainy-day money when things are good.

So the mayor is right that the 40x test is not a perfect indicator of whether a tenant will pay the rent. That’s where the credit score comes in. An applicant whose income is a little short but has an 800 credit score is a safe bet. Someone with a high credit score but minimal income is not. Nor is someone with adequate income but two personal bankruptcies and a litany of credit defaults.

A Mamdani spokesperson told me the administration would discuss with the City Council whether the tenant or the landlord should get to choose income or credit history. But it doesn’t matter: The landlord needs both pieces of information to make an informed judgment.

It is especially important in a city where it can take two years to evict a tenant or squatter. If housing courts were functional, landlords could more readily give imperfect applicants a chance.

By the way, Mamdani has said the specialized high schools exam should not be the lone criterion for admission. “We know that a single test does not reflect the aptitude of students across the city,” he said.

But landlords should hand over apartments based on a single number?

Besides being impractical, the proposal smacks of unfairness. Mamdani is saying landlords should let tenants move into apartments that technically they cannot afford. And because they cannot afford them, a rent freeze is necessary.

That’s forcing landlords to do good deeds, then punishing them for it.

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