NYC Launches 10-Site MATCH Pilot to Cut 8-Month Homeless Housing Delays
Updated
Updated · Gothamist · May 13
NYC Launches 10-Site MATCH Pilot to Cut 8-Month Homeless Housing Delays
7 articles · Updated · Gothamist · May 13
Mayor Zohran Mamdani will start MATCH this fall, letting developers work directly with shelter providers to fill homeless set-aside apartments faster in up to 10 new developments.
The pilot removes city agencies as the go-between after the median lease-up time for those units stretched to nearly eight months last fiscal year, up from six months in 2024 and more than double 2021.
More than 83,000 New Yorkers sleep in shelters each night even as reserved apartments sit vacant; last year 3,700 households moved from DHS shelters into newly built units under the set-aside program.
The 2019 program requires qualifying subsidized buildings with more than 40 units to reserve at least 15% for shelter residents, and officials say the new system will be monitored to prevent tenant cherry-picking.
Mamdani is pairing MATCH with a task force on supportive-housing vacancies as shelter stays top a year on average—378 days for single men and 372 for families with children.
NYC's housing plan promises speed, but at what cost to community input and environmental review?
With millions desperate for housing, can NYC's lottery reforms truly fix a system with a 0.2% success rate?
NYC’s SPEED Reforms: Cutting Housing Delivery Timelines in Half to Solve the Affordable Housing Crisis
Overview
New York City is facing a severe housing crisis, which has prompted the Mamdani administration to take urgent action. Recognizing the need for both immediate relief and long-term solutions, the administration launched significant reforms to protect tenants and speed up the creation of new housing. A key challenge is the large number of vacant, unrented units, which slow down new development and worsen the shortage. Addressing these vacant units is now central to the city’s strategy, as the new reforms aim to make housing more available and affordable for all New Yorkers.