If you live in one of New York City’s roughly one million rent-stabilized apartments, your rent for next year is being decided right now — and you have a legal right to walk into a room and tell the people deciding it exactly how it affects your life. The NYC Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) cast its preliminary vote on May 7, 2026, and will take its binding final vote on June 25. Between now and then, four public hearings give tenants the floor. Here’s what’s on the table, what your rights are in this process, and exactly how to make your voice heard before the gavel comes down.
What the Rent Guidelines Board Actually Does
The RGB is a nine-member board that sets the maximum legal rent increase for rent-stabilized apartments and lofts each year. Its decision applies to leases that begin on or after October 1, 2026. If you’re rent-stabilized, your landlord cannot raise your rent on a renewal lease by more than the percentage the Board sets — that’s the core protection, and it’s why this vote matters to your budget.
This is not your landlord’s choice and it is not negotiable apartment by apartment. It’s a citywide cap, decided in public, by a board that is legally required to hear from the public first.
What’s on the Table for 2026
On May 7, the Board set a preliminary range — the menu it will choose from at the final vote. According to multiple news outlets that covered the vote, including THE CITY, NY1, and CBS News New York, the preliminary range was set at 0% to 2% for one-year leases and 0% to 4% for two-year leases. The bottom of that range — 0% — would be a rent freeze.
The preliminary range is exactly that: preliminary. The final number can land anywhere inside it, and the only vote that legally binds your rent is the one on June 25. In his official statement on the preliminary vote, Mayor Mamdani urged “tenants, owners, and New Yorkers from every borough” to make their voices heard at the hearings before the Board “arrive[s] at a decision later this summer.” Translation: the room is not yet closed, and public testimony is part of how the final number gets decided.
Your Rights in This Process
Two things are worth being precise about, because tenants often misunderstand them.
First, the RGB cap only protects rent-stabilized units. If your apartment is market-rate, the Board’s vote does not cap your renewal increase. Market-rate tenants have a different — and newer — protection: New York’s Good Cause Eviction law. If you’re not sure which category you’re in, that’s the first thing to nail down, because it determines what rights you actually have. (Our guide to tenant rights and Housing Court is a good starting point, and you can confirm your apartment’s status by requesting your rent history from the state, described below.)
Second, you have a right to testify — for free, with interpretation available. The RGB is legally required to hold public hearings before the final vote, and any member of the public may register to speak. You do not need a lawyer, you do not need to prepare a formal document, and the city provides Spanish interpretation at each hearing venue.
The 2026 Public Hearing Schedule
The RGB scheduled four public testimony hearings across the boroughs, per its official 2026 meetings calendar:
- Thursday, June 4, 5:00–8:00 PM — Jamaica Performing Arts Center, 153-10 Jamaica Avenue, Jamaica, Queens
- Monday, June 8, 5:00–8:00 PM — Hostos Community College/CUNY, Main Theatre, 450 Grand Concourse, Bronx
- Thursday, June 11, 7:00–10:00 PM (note the later start) — The Theater at City Tech, 285 Jay Street, Brooklyn
- Tuesday, June 16, 5:00–8:00 PM — Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, Manhattan
Spanish interpretation is available at all four, and every venue is wheelchair accessible. The final vote is Thursday, June 25, 2026 at 7:00 PM at El Museo del Barrio, 1230 Fifth Avenue at 104th Street, Manhattan (doors open at 6:00 PM). The Board notes that disruptive items such as noisemakers and drums are not permitted inside the final-vote venue.
Action Steps: How to Make Your Voice Heard
- Register to testify. To speak at a hearing, complete the official hearing registration form on the RGB website. You can also register on-site at any hearing during its posted hours. To testify you must appear in person — you can watch online, but you cannot speak remotely.
- Keep it short and personal. You do not need statistics. The most persuasive testimony is your own numbers: what you pay, what you earn, what a 2% or 4% increase would mean for your household. Two minutes of lived experience carries weight.
- Can’t attend? Watch and follow up. Every hearing and the final vote stream live on the RGB’s YouTube channel. You can also subscribe to RGB email updates to track the final decision.
- Confirm your apartment is actually rent-stabilized. Request your free rent history from New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) by emailing rentinfo@hcr.ny.gov. If your unit is stabilized, this document also reveals whether you’ve ever been overcharged.
- Know your renewal rights regardless of the number. Whatever the Board sets, your landlord must offer a stabilized renewal and cannot exceed the cap. If you receive a renewal offer that’s higher than the approved increase, that’s a violation — document it and get free help.
The Bottom Line
The 2026 rent guidelines aren’t settled. A preliminary range of 0–2% on one-year leases and 0–4% on two-year leases is the menu; the binding choice happens June 25. Between now and then, four borough hearings put the decision partly in tenants’ hands — and showing up, or testifying, is one of the few moments in the housing system where an ordinary renter speaks directly to the people setting the rules. If your rent is stabilized, this is your year’s single most consequential housing meeting. Mark June 25, and consider registering for one of the June hearings before the room closes.
Sources: NYC Rent Guidelines Board 2026 Meetings & Hearings calendar and hearing registration page (rentguidelinesboard.cityofnewyork.us); Office of the Mayor official statement, May 7, 2026 (nyc.gov). Preliminary range figures as reported by THE CITY, NY1, and CBS News New York coverage of the May 7, 2026 preliminary vote.
