New York City's Rent Guidelines Board has dropped a fresh stack of research reports, and the takeaway is blunt: the cost of running rent-stabilized buildings is rising faster than a lot of the broader economy. The board's Price Index of Operating Costs jumped 5.3% year over year and is up about 31% over the past five years, with energy and insurance leading the surge. Those numbers raise the stakes for the RGB's upcoming rent guideline decisions and are already setting landlords and tenant advocates on a collision course.
Board Data: Costs Pull Ahead Of Inflation
The Price Index of Operating Costs - the RGB’s market-basket measure of taxes, labor, fuel, utilities, maintenance and insurance - rose 5.3% between April 2025 and March 2026, while the “Core” PIOC (which excludes heating fuels) climbed 4.8%, according to the Rent Guidelines Board. Fuel costs were up about 11% and insurance roughly 10.5% over the year. When those changes are run through the RGB’s commensurate formulas, the math points to rent increases in the mid-single digits - roughly a 3.4% to 4.5% range to keep owners’ net operating income flat under the board’s models.
Income, Expenses And Softer Collections
The board’s Income and Expense data show net operating income rising about 6.2% between 2023 and 2024, or roughly 2.2% after adjusting for inflation, even as presenters flagged trouble on the collections side. Owners are collecting around 92% of charged rent on average, presenters told the board, a shortfall that, combined with higher expenses, is squeezing some portfolios, as reported by The Real Deal.
Sales Spike And A Split Market
Sales of buildings with at least one rent-stabilized unit picked up sharply in 2025. Roughly 730 such properties changed hands, a 33% jump from 2024, and the Bronx led the city with 138 buildings sold, up 106%, according to the Rent Guidelines Board Mortgage Survey Report. The same report shows the average per-unit sale price citywide reaching $289,478, while per-unit prices for pre-1974 buildings slipped about 5.8% - a sign that older, fully stabilized stock is behaving differently from newer or partially stabilized properties.
Landlords And Tenants Trade Shots
Owner groups argue the rising index proves they need rent increases to keep buildings afloat, pointing to those energy and insurance hikes as the latest body blow. Tenant members and advocates are not buying it. "I don’t think this is appropriate for us to be giving a ton of weight to in our decision-making," tenant board member Adán Soltren told the panel, as tenant advocates warned that landlords’ profits have grown even as they ask for more relief, as reported by The Real Deal. Owner representatives counter that weaker rent collections, paired with rising insurance and energy bills, already put some affordable buildings at real risk.
What Happens Next
The RGB will lean on these reports, along with public testimony, as it crafts guideline ranges this spring. The calendar calls for more hearings and a preliminary vote in May, followed by a final vote in June. Political pressure from all corners - mayoral appointees, tenant advocates and owner groups - is expected to shape how the board weighs affordability against the hit from operating costs.
For tenants, the numbers fuel arguments for caps or freezes on rent-stabilized increases. For owners, the same data are fresh ammunition that their costs keep climbing. The board’s coming weeks of hearings and votes will decide how, and how much, that gap is closed by rent levels, policy shifts or some mix of the two.
