Council raises NYC rent freeze income limit to $75,000 for seniors and tenants with disabilities, first increase since 2014

More older New Yorkers and tenants with disabilities could soon have their rent frozen. The City Council on Thursday passed a bill raising the household income limit for the city's Rent Freeze Program, known as SCRIE and DRIE, from $50,000 to $75,000, the Council announced. The change applies retroactively to July 1, 2026.

The bill, Intro. 978-B, sponsored by Brooklyn Council Member Farah Louis, also aligns the definition of income the city uses with state law. It now goes to Mayor Zohran Mamdani. City Hall did not tell The Real Deal whether he plans to sign it or let it take effect without his signature after 30 days; the Department of Finance (DOF) supports the change and is preparing to carry it out, the outlet reported.

What the programs do

The Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE) and the Disability Rent Increase Exemption (DRIE) lock a tenant's rent at a set amount so future increases don't apply. The landlord gets a property tax credit that covers the difference, which is why landlord groups such as the New York Apartment Association back the expansion, according to The Real Deal.

The $50,000 income cap had been frozen since 2014. Albany had already authorized a higher limit, and the Council's bill implements it, according to a summary of the Council's September hearing. Since 2014, regional inflation rose about 39% and Social Security cost-of-living increases added up to about 38%, pushing some tenants over the old cap without improving their finances, the hearing record shows.

Who could benefit

• About 5,000 more households: DOF expects the higher cap to raise enrollment by roughly 9%. About 67,677 households received SCRIE or DRIE in 2024, The Real Deal reported.
• People turned down since July 1: once the bill becomes law, DOF plans to prioritize SCRIE and DRIE applications that were denied or revoked on or after July 1 and to reinstate benefits retroactively for people who meet the new limit, according to a DOF implementation plan reviewed by The Real Deal.
• Many eligible people still aren't enrolled: a June 2025 DOF report found that 58% of the roughly 160,000 eligible households were not signed up, The Real Deal noted.

The other rules still apply

According to the city's Rent Freeze Program, tenants must live in the apartment and be named on the lease, the apartment must be rent-controlled, rent-regulated or rent-stabilized (certain Mitchell-Lama, HDFC and Battery Park City units also qualify), and the household must spend more than one-third of its monthly income on rent. SCRIE is for people 62 and older; DRIE requires a qualifying disability benefit such as SSI or SSDI. NYCHA apartments, Section 8 units and sublets are not eligible.

The city says the fastest way to apply or renew is online; paper applications are also accepted, and 311 can help. Mitchell-Lama and HDFC tenants apply for SCRIE through the city's housing agency, HPD.

"Our older adults and people with disabilities should not have to choose between paying their rent and affording other basic necessities," Louis said in the Council's statement. A related bill to create a single application for both programs has not advanced, The Real Deal reported.