RGB Releases 2026 Income & Expense, Affordability, Operating Costs Reports

The NYC Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) annually publishes six research studies that inform annual rent decisions for rent-stabilized housing: the Price Index of Operating Costs; Income & Expense Study; Housing Supply Report; Income & Affordability Study; Mortgage Survey Report; and Changes to the Rent Stabilized Housing Stock.

Recently, the RGB released its 2026 Income & Affordability Study, the Income & Expense Study, and the Price Index of Operating Costs. These reports provide insight into the economic pressures facing both tenants and property owners and are key to understanding the rationale behind proposed rent adjustments.

Income & Affordability Highlights

The 2026 Income & Affordability Study reflects a complex economic landscape for New York City’s tenant population. This study highlights year-to-year changes in many of the major economic factors affecting NYC’s tenant population and takes into consideration a broad range of market forces and public policies affecting housing affordability, such as unemployment rates; wages; housing court and eviction data; and rent and poverty levels.

Here are the highlights from this year’s report:

• Data from the American Community Survey shows that in 2024, inflation-adjusted median renter income in NYC rose by 1.8%. By borough, renter income in real terms increased in each borough but the Bronx, rising by the greatest proportion in Manhattan (6.9%), and declining by 5.3% in the Bronx. Citywide, median renter income rose by 5.7% nominally.
• The Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures inflation, was 3.4% in the NYC metropolitan area during 2025, a decrease of 0.4 percentage points from 2024. Excluding the cost of shelter, the CPI increased by 2.7% in 2025. The CPI index for rent in the metro area increased by 4.7%.
• Data from the 2024 American Community Survey shows that 51.6% of NYC renter households pay 30% or more of their income toward rent, including 28.8% that pay 50% or more.
• Nonpayment filings in Housing Court decreased by 1.3%, and nonpayment cases scheduled to be heard decreased by 12.1% in 2025.
• In 2025, residential evictions in NYC rose by 9.7% overall. They rose by 11.8% in buildings that contain rent-stabilized units, and rose by 6.5% in buildings that do not.
• Businesses within NYC added an average of 23,800 jobs in 2025, a 0.5% increase, following an increase of 2.3% in 2024.
• The average annual unemployment rate for NYC residents rose to 5.2% in 2025, up from 5.0% in 2024. By borough, the rate ranged from 4.5% to 6.8%, highest in the Bronx and lowest in Staten Island.
• Cash assistance caseloads rose by 7.4% in 2025, while the number of SNAP (food stamp) recipients declined by 0.4%, and Medicaid enrollees declined by 5.0%.

Income & Expense Study Highlights

As part of the process of establishing rent adjustments for stabilized apartments, the RGB analyzes the cost of operating and maintaining rental housing in New York City. The board measures changes in prices and costs using the Price Index of Operating Costs (PIOC), a survey of prices and costs for various goods and services required to operate and maintain rent-stabilized apartment buildings, which include buildings that contain at least one rent-stabilized unit.

Since 1990, the RGB has also used a data source that enables researchers to compare PIOC-measured prices and costs with those reported by owners: Real Property Income and Expense (RPIE) statements from rent-stabilized buildings collected by the NYC Department of Finance. These Income and Expense (I&E) statements, filed annually by property owners, provide detailed information on the revenues and costs of income-producing properties.

This year’s main Income & Expense Study encompasses a sample of over 17,800 buildings with rent-stabilized units, which represents over 805,000 units, reporting data for calendar year 2024 from the DOF RPIE submissions. Here are the highlights from the study:

• Between 2023 and 2024, Net Operating Income (NOI)—that is, revenue remaining after operating costs are paid, increased 6.2% for buildings containing rent-stabilized units. After adjusting for inflation, NOI rose 2.2%.
• The growth in NOI citywide was greatest in Staten Island, rising 15.1%, while in Core Manhattan (south of West 110^th and East 96^th Streets), it rose 10.0%; Upper Manhattan, by 9.1%; Queens by 6.8%; and Brooklyn by 4.4%. By contrast, NOI fell 0.1% in the Bronx.
• NOI growth between 2023 and 2024, adjusted for inflation, grew by 6.1% in Core Manhattan and 0.9% in the remainder of the city.
• Rental income increased an average of 4.8%, total income grew an average of 4.9%, and operating costs rose an average of 4.2% between 2023 and 2024.
• Citywide average monthly collected rent for buildings containing rent-stabilized units was $1,681; average income was $1,890; average operating cost was $1,203; and average NOI was $688 per unit per month.
• The number of buildings in distress (defined as negative NOI) declined 0.1 percentage point, with 9.2% of all buildings with at least one rent-stabilized unit in distress.

Price Index of Operating Costs Highlights

Operating costs for owners continued to rise in 2025. The Price Index of Operating Costs (PIOC) measures changes in the cost of purchasing a specified set of goods and services (market basket) paid by owners in the operation and maintenance of buildings that contain rent-stabilized units in NYC. Here are some highlights from the report:

• The Price Index of Operating Costs (PIOC) for buildings that contain rent-stabilized apartments increased by 5.3% this year.
• The “Core” PIOC, which excludes the changes in fuel oil prices, natural gas, and steam costs, rose by 4.8% this year.
• Real estate taxes rose by 2.6%, primarily due to a rise in assessments for Class 2 properties.
• Insurance costs rose by the second greatest proportion in this year’s PIOC, 10.5%.
• The Administrative costs component rose by 4.8%.
• The Maintenance component increased by 6.0%.
• The Utilities component increased by 5.6%.
• The Labor Costs component increased by 3.0%, due to increases in wages for both union and non-union labor.
• The Fuel component increased by 11.0%, the greatest proportional increase in this year’s PIOC.
• Overall costs in natural-gas heated buildings increased by 5.3%, while overall costs in fuel-oil heated buildings increased by 5.5%.
• Costs in pre-1974 buildings rose by 5.3%, while costs in post-1973 buildings rose by 5.9%.
• The PIOC for buildings that contain rent-stabilized apartments is projected to increase by 4.1% next year.

Editor’s Note: Recognizing the role that the rising cost of insurance plays in overall operating costs, Mayor Mamdani recently announced a city-backed insurance program that aims to reduce by up to 30 percent the cost of property and liability insurance for owners of rent-stabilized and affordable housing. For details, see Mayor Mamdani Unveils Program to Lower Landlords’ Insurance Costs.