'Huge Step Forward': NYC Directs $1B To Shore Up Supportive Housing

The slice of New York City's housing stock devoted to keeping residents out of homelessness has long struggled with deteriorating buildings and a lack of funding — but a new city program aims to change that.

The city's Department of Housing Preservation and Development launched three programs to help supportive housing landlords preserve and stabilize their existing supportive housing units, HPD officials announced Tuesday.

The cash will come from a two-year, $1B commitment announced in Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s Block by Block housing plan, which will fund supportive housing development and preservation.

Supportive housing — or buildings that include social services for their residents as well as shelter — has been overlooked by the city amid its push to kick-start construction, industry advocates said.

“Prior to this, there was not a dedicated programmatic approach to supportive housing preservation,” Rachel Fee, executive director of the New York Housing Conference, said in a text message. “We’re pleased the city is creating a new program to preserve this critically needed housing.”

NYC has 39,000 supportive housing units, 2,600 of which are vacant and ready for move-in, according to the mayor’s $22B housing plan, released last month.

While the city hasn't quantified the number of supportive housing units in need of financial assistance, landlords can now apply for help via one of three options in the Supportive Preservation Program that fund rehabilitation work in existing supportive housing units, an HPD spokesperson said.

“Supportive housing plays a critical role in our city, providing stability and services to New Yorkers in need,” NYC Deputy Mayor for Housing and Planning Leila Bozorg said in a statement. “This program will be an important part of our holistic approach to provide and protect the housing that New Yorkers rely on.”

Through the program, the city plans to create a dedicated team of HPD staffers to help owners develop preservation strategies and reach financial stability. It will also offer three options for landlords who need to find cash to rehabilitate supportive apartments or balance their books.

If owners can get private debt or government funding from an agency other than HPD to preserve supportive housing units, they can apply for a full or partial tax exemption. The agency can also offer gap financing to owners tapping private construction or permanent financing.

For landlords who can’t get private debt to renovate their units or need to reduce their operating expenses to preserve affordability, HPD will offer low-interest loans and tax exemptions through the program.

Properties need to have an existing social services contract with a city or state government agency to be eligible. Buildings that combine nonsupportive and supportive units also qualify for the program.

“It's great to see the city making supportive preservation a priority,” said Thacher Tiffany, chief of housing development at nonprofit Goddard Riverside, which runs several Upper West Side permanent supportive housing facilities. “We're optimistic that this will be a key contribution.”

The program removes complications that landlords have previously faced as they try to find funding, Fee said.

“Some buildings would participate in the [low-income housing tax credit] year 15 preservation program,” she said, referring to an HPD-run program that provides loans to buildings that are undergoing repositioning as their tax credits expire. “Given the complexities of supportive housing with government operating and service contracts, this approach makes more sense.”

HPD will also tweak a Bill de Blasio-era program, the New York City 15/15 Supportive Housing Initiative, which committed to adding 15,000 supportive housing units by 2030.

Instead of leveraging 15/15 to create more housing, the Mamdani administration will gear it toward preservation. HPD will issue a new request for proposals from landlords who are looking for ways to preserve or rehabilitate properties that have social services contracts with the city.

The decision to direct city dollars toward preservation instead of only development is a “huge step forward,” Tierra Labrada, Supportive Housing Network of New York director of policy, said in a statement. Many existing buildings were constructed decades ago and are in need of fresh funding.

“As we have long advocated to the city, supportive housing cannot focus solely on new development,” she said. “We are grateful to Mayor Mamdani and his administration for listening to providers and advocates and for addressing this long-standing gap.”