New York City builds the most apartments in a single year since 1965

Overview

Updated Jul 9

New York City finished 38,682 apartments in 2025, the most in a single year since 1965, driven by the City of Yes zoning rewrite and the 485-x rental tax break. The record has since run into complications: permit approvals fell nearly 28 percent in 2025 as tariffs and 485-x's wage rules pushed up costs, and developers began filing permits for buildings of exactly 99 units to avoid the program's higher wage threshold.

In January 2026, Eric Adams left office and Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as mayor. Dan Garodnick, who shepherded City of Yes through, resigned from City Planning eight days into the new administration. In May 2026, Mamdani released 'Block by Block,' a $22 billion plan targeting 200,000 new affordable homes over a decade — about four times what City of Yes was projected to deliver.

Why it matters

New York added nearly 39,000 apartments last year, its most since 1965, testing whether zoning reform can dent a 400,000-unit shortage.

Questions about this story

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can you list the number of appartments build year of the last 10 years

NYC completed between roughly 20,000 and 38,682 apartments annually over the last decade, with 2025's 38,682 units the highest since 1965 and a clear upward surge since 2022.

Why it matters: The trend shows a decade of moderate output followed by a sharp climb, driven first by a 421-a permit rush in 2015, then a lull, then record highs after new tax breaks and rezoning in 2024.

2016–2017: exceeded 20,000 units both years — a delayed wave from a 2015 rush to lock in 421-a tax benefits before changes took effect
2018: ~28,600 units completed (2019 was reported as a 14.2% drop from 2018)
2019: 24,566 units, with more than half in six sub-borough areas of Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn
2022: ~26,000 units; 2023: ~28,600 (9.8% increase year-over-year)
2024: ~33,859–34,049 units — largest single-year total since at least 2010 at that point
2025: 38,682 units — the 60-year high, driven by the new 485-x tax break and City of Yes zoning rewrite
Note: verified figures for 2020 and 2021 were not available in sources reviewed — those years likely dipped due to COVID construction slowdowns

Sources

Room for disagreement

The OSC report cites 34,049 completions in 2024 while the arcfe.com source cites 33,859 — a minor discrepancy likely reflecting different counting methodologies (certificate of occupancy dates vs. DCP database cut-offs).

AI-generated with web search — may be wrong. Check the linked sources.

Key Indicators

38,682

Apartments completed in 2025

The highest single-year total for New York City since 1965.

33,859

Apartments completed in 2024

The second straight year completions topped 30,000 units.

~400,000

Estimated housing shortfall

The gap Zillow and Ariel Property Advisors say the city still needs to fill.

28,773

Units proposed in Q1 2026

More than double the 14,338 quarterly average from 2025, per New York YIMBY.

-28%

Permit approvals in 2025

New building permits fell nearly 28 percent year over year as tariffs and 485-x costs bit.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

Ever wondered what historical figures would say about today's headlines?

People Involved

Eric Adams

Former Mayor of New York City

Left office January 1, 2026, succeeded by Zohran Mamdani

Dan Garodnick

Former Director, NYC Department of City Planning; Former Chair, City Planning Commission

Resigned January 2026, eight days into Mamdani administration

Kathy Hochul

Governor of New York

Backed the state-level pieces of the housing push

Shimon Shkury

President, Ariel Property Advisors

Analyzing whether the pace can hold

Zohran Kwame Mamdani

Mayor of New York City

Took office January 1, 2026

Sideya Sherman

Director, NYC Department of City Planning; Chair, City Planning Commission

Appointed February 2026

Organizations Involved

New York City Department of City Planning

Municipal Agency

Now led by Sideya Sherman under Mayor Mamdani; continuing housing production work under Block by Block plan

The city agency that writes zoning rules and tracks how much housing gets built.

Real Estate Board of New York

Industry Association

Tracking the construction pipeline

The main trade group for New York developers and landlords.

Timeline

June 2022 May 2026

10 events Latest: May 26th, 2026 · 4 months ago

Tap a bar to jump to that date

May 2026
Mamdani releases Block by Block housing plan
Latest Policy

Mayor Mamdani unveiled a $22 billion, 10-year housing blueprint targeting 200,000 new affordable homes and preservation of another 200,000. The plan pairs rezonings near transit corridors with a Construction Justice Act setting a $40 minimum hourly wage on city-financed projects.
May 26th, 2026
99-unit loophole draws scrutiny
Policy

The CITY reported that developers had filed permits for 120-plus buildings with exactly 99 apartments since April 2024, a deliberate strategy to avoid the 485-x wage threshold that kicks in at 100 units.
May 7th, 2026
March 2026
Pipeline stays strong into 2026
Data

Developers propose 16,815 units across 281 buildings in the first quarter, with 43,000 units under construction citywide.
March 31st, 2026
February 2026
Sideya Sherman appointed City Planning director
Personnel

Mamdani named Sideya Sherman, formerly the city's chief equity officer, to lead the Department of City Planning. Sherman was tasked with continuing housing production efforts under the new administration.
February 24th, 2026
January 2026
Dan Garodnick resigns from City Planning
Personnel

Garodnick stepped down as director of the Department of City Planning eight days into Mamdani's term, reportedly after not receiving a deputy mayor appointment in the new administration.
January 9th, 2026
Adams leaves office; Mamdani sworn in as mayor
Political

Eric Adams' single term ended. Zohran Mamdani took office as the new mayor, inheriting the City of Yes reforms and the record 2025 construction count.
January 1st, 2026
December 2025
City reports most apartments built since 1965
Milestone

New York's planning department reports 38,682 completed apartments in 2025, the highest single-year total in 60 years.
December 15th, 2025
December 2024
City Council adopts City of Yes
Legislation

The council passes the citywide zoning rewrite, projected to enable 82,000 homes over 15 years, paired with a $5 billion funding pledge.
December 5th, 2024
April 2024
State creates 485-x replacement
Policy

The state budget establishes 485-x, a new tax break for rental housing, with construction-wage requirements built in.
April 20th, 2024
June 2022
421-a tax break expires
Policy

New York's main tax incentive for rental housing lapses, and developers warn new rental construction will stall without a replacement.
June 15th, 2022

Scenarios

New York tops 30,000 completions again in 2026

Likely Resolves by Q1 2027

Discussed by: Real Estate Board of New York, Commercial Observer

With 43,000 units under construction entering 2026 and a strong proposal pipeline, the city delivers another year above 30,000 completed apartments. Projects already permitted under 421-a and early 485-x filings carry the total, keeping New York the national outlier for a third straight year.

Completions slide as the pre-2022 pipeline runs dry

Possible Resolves by Q1 2028

Discussed by: Ariel Property Advisors, Engineers and Architects of America

Analysts note that many 2025 completions came from projects grandfathered under the old 421-a break. As those finish and 485-x's wage rules push developers toward smaller buildings, annual output falls below 25,000 units, showing the reforms have not yet replaced the lost incentive at scale.

City reaches the 50,000-unit annual pace analysts say it needs

Unlikely Resolves by Q1 2029

Discussed by: Ariel Property Advisors

City of Yes rezonings and neighborhood plans in Jamaica, Long Island City, and Gowanus mature into shovel-ready projects. Combined with 485-x uptake, annual completions climb to the 50,000 mark that Shimon Shkury and others say is required to start closing the shortfall. This would mark the reforms working as designed.

485-x wage rules get reformed, reversing the 99-unit loophole

Possible Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: The CITY, Real Deal, Commercial Observer

With Mamdani's administration 'still evaluating' 485-x reforms and over 120 buildings designed to skirt its wage threshold, the state could adjust the 100-unit trigger or tiered wage rates. A fix would eliminate the incentive to downsize buildings, potentially restoring large-project pipeline volume.

Block by Block falls short of its 200,000-unit target

Possible Resolves by End of 2031

Discussed by: Real Deal, Ariel Property Advisors

Mamdani's plan depends on $22 billion in city capital, new rezoning approvals, and financing tools that do not yet exist. If the City Council balks on rezonings, or borrowing costs stay elevated, the build count could trail the goal substantially — as prior mayoral housing pledges have.

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

1961–1965

New York's 1961 zoning overhaul and mid-1960s building rush (1961–1965)

New York rewrote its zoning code in 1961, cutting how much developers could build on many lots. Builders rushed to break ground before the new limits fully applied. Completions peaked around 1965, the record that stood until 2025.

Then

A wave of apartment towers finished in the mid-1960s, then construction fell sharply as the tighter rules took hold.

Now

The 1961 code shaped New York's skyline and density for decades and is often blamed for constraining later housing supply.

Why this matters now

The 1965 peak is the exact benchmark the 2025 total just matched. The earlier surge came from restriction; this one comes from loosening the rules.

December 2018–2019

Minneapolis ends single-family-only zoning (2019)

Minneapolis became the first major U.S. city to abolish zoning that allowed only single-family homes on most residential land. The plan let two- and three-unit buildings rise citywide. Permits for multi-unit housing climbed in the years after.

Then

Multifamily permits rose and construction picked up in previously restricted neighborhoods.

Now

Studies credited the change, alongside broader building, with holding rents nearly flat while other cities saw sharp increases.

Why this matters now

It is the clearest U.S. test of the idea behind City of Yes: allow more housing everywhere, not just in a few zones, and supply responds.

2000s–2010s

Tokyo's permissive national zoning keeps rents flat (2000s–2010s)

Japan sets zoning at the national level with broad building rights, so Tokyo added hundreds of thousands of housing units a year through the 2000s and 2010s. Supply kept up with demand in a metro of over 13 million.

Then

Tokyo consistently permitted far more homes per capita than New York, London, or San Francisco.

Now

Rents in Tokyo stayed roughly flat for two decades even as population grew, a rare outcome among global cities.

Why this matters now

Tokyo is the model advocates cite for what sustained high output looks like. New York's 2025 record is one strong year; the question is whether it can string together many.