NYC rents rising at rate outpacing inflation

New York

NEW York City rents rose faster than inflation over the past three years, continuing a housing squeeze that has been particularly felt by lower-income tenants and shows no signs of abating, new figures from the Census Bureau show.

The results of the bureau's Housing and Vacancy Survey, a snapshot of the city's housing market taken every three years, comes as city and state officials are deciding housing budgets for the city's fiscal year that begins July 1 and are about to negotiate rent laws. The findings also lend urgency to Mayor Bill de Blasio's plan to build and preserve more affordable housing.

In a city where two of every three homes is a rental, the median rent rose 3.4 per cent, after adjusting for inflation, to US$1,200 a month from 201…