Report: In Q1 2023, New York City’s Dwindling Construction Pipeline Continued to Languish Amid Housing Supply Crisis

Number of New Filings Was 24% Below the Historical Quarterly Average

Proposed Square Footage Was 31% Below the Historical Quarterly Average

NEW YORK, NY –The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) today released its Quarterly New Building Construction Pipeline Report for Q1 2023. This report dissects public information on newly proposed building projects to review the current development pipeline in New York City. This quarterly report is separate from REBNY’s monthly report on foundation permit applications, which further demonstrates that many proposed rental projects with below market rate units may not actually advance to actual construction, particularly given the expiration of the 421-a tax abatement.

Read the full Q1 2023 Construction Pipeline report here.

According to the report, there were 378 new building filings in Q1 2023 representing approximately 8 million square feet. The number of filings is a 3% decrease from the previous quarter and the proposed square footage is a 36% decrease from the previous quarter.

The Q1 2023 activity was also significantly below the historical quarterly averages tracked for New York City since 2008. The number of new building filings was 24% below the quarterly historic average and the proposed square footage was 31% below the quarterly historic average.

The decrease in the multi-family sector was particularly sharp. The new building filings in Q1 2023, if completed, would deliver 5,475 new multiple dwelling units. If completed, these units could either be ownership (condo/co-op) or rental. This represents a 31% decrease from the previous quarter and a 13% decrease compared to the historical quarterly average.

Based on the data, it is clear that the housing pipeline is still far behind where it needs to be to address the City’s long-term needs. Experts have estimated the City must build approximately 560,000 new units of rental housing by 2030 just to keep pace with projected growth.

“The City’s housing market and affordability crisis continues to worsen, with a stifled pipeline of new homes and an increasing percentage of existing rental units under distress. These results are due, in part, to the decisions made by the State Legislature over the last several years,” said REBNY President Jim Whelan. “Most recently, the State Legislature failed to put forth any substantive housing production proposal as part of their State budget proposals. Without adopting proven policies to increase housing production, lawmakers and their constituents should expect the City’s housing crisis to continue to worsen.”

This report complements REBNY’s monthly Multifamily Foundation Plan Report, which reviews monthly applications for residential building foundations submitted by developers to the NYC Department of Buildings. The complete Quarterly Construction Pipeline Report can be found here.

For more information about REBNY research reports, visit go.rebny.com/Reports.

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