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Tenants paying top dollar for modern New York City apartments are battling chronic maintenance issues.
New residential buildings across the city have a long list of headaches, according to a Gothamist investigation, including water outages, flooding, heat failures and infestations.
The report found that nearly 10% of the city’s residential buildings opened since 2016 have significantly higher rates of housing code violations compared to the citywide average. Complaints range from cheap finishes to full-on power outages.
The problem has become so dire at amenity-rich buildings in Brooklyn, Queens and The Bronx that market-rate tenants are getting organized, lobbying for repairs and rent concessions.
Chronic maintenance problems and poor construction can be linked to growing industry pressures, experts told Gothamist.
Cash-strapped developers are cutting costs during the costly building process, prices for materials are climbing and skilled workers are in short supply.
Not even the city’s wealthiest residents are free from modern construction pitfalls. The 432 Park Ave. tower, a Billionaires’ Row supertall has been plagued by price cuts and condo board lawsuits in recent years. Allegations include cracking concrete, faulty elevators, excessive noise, leaks, power outages and other operational headaches since its 2015 debut.
“The quality of everything that goes into construction seems to be going down while the prices just continue to go up,” Darrick Borowski, an architect and housing researcher, told Gothmist.
That is despite every new building in the outlet’s report receiving property tax abatements from New York’s 421a program.
38 Sixth, a shiny new affordable housing development in Prospect Heights, has racked up 1,320 complaints over issues like leaks and roaches over the last two years, Gothamist reported. Avanath Capital, an investment firm that took over the building in 2022, said they are responding to complaints, but denied there are water issues.
Tenants that once felt fortunate to snag a home there in the city housing lottery later detailed their disappointments online, rattling off regular encounters with roaches, a lack of hot water, dirty hallways, broken elevators and building locks.
Tenants of Mott Haven’s One38 have had their share of complaints. The two-year-old residential tower boasts amenities like an indoor pool and rooftop pickleball court, but tenants told Gothamist about power outages, a crumbling facade and other chronic issues.
Among them, Rowena Manapat, who moved there in the summer of 2024. She told Gothamist her rent cost $4,400 per month for her two-bedroom spread. The day she moved in, she said, she found her unit “filthy” with dust coating the floors.
“We had no water, and the next night there was a power outage,” she said. “It is crappy luxury.”
Joseph Klein, managing agent for the property, told the outlet the development had its “fair share” of issues when it debuted — including flooding that took $1 million to remediate — but added they have been fixed. He blamed them on the borough’s older water and electrical infrastructure.
One Blue Slip, a 359-unit tower in Greenpoint, advertised river views when it opened in 2018, but gained a reputation for water problems. Tenants, some of whom pay more than $12,400 per month for three-bedrooms, encountered leaking ceilings in the fall and water outages from frozen pipes in the winter.
”It’s come to the point this year where everything’s breaking down and people’s health is at stake,” one resident told Gothamist.
A rep for One Blue Slip’s co-owner, Brookfield, said they are investigating the problem. Consistent hot water has returned in the meantime, Gothamist reported, and residents have received rent credits.
Ilana Maier, a spokesperson for Housing Preservation and Development, told the outlet the city is investigating conditions at One Blue Slip and others. Reforms in Albany to cut down permitting processes are underway, as well, offering hope that reducing developer’s costly construction timelines will help reverse the trend of shoddy builds.
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