NYC Developers File Plans for 21M SF of New Construction in Q1: REBNY

It’s been a busy start to 2026 for New York City developers, as they filed 577 new building filings in the first quarter of 2026, representing a 74 percent increase from the same period last year, according to the latest research from the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY).

The 577 new building filings — which cover a total of approximately 21.2 million square feet in proposed projects — represent a 13 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2025, when there were 511 new filings. The number of filings for the first quarter of this year was also 2 percent higher than the historical average since 2008.

While the new building filings across all five boroughs are a mix of residential, commercial, hospitality and even a dentition facility project, the majority of the filings were for multifamily projects, which accounted for 75 percent, or 15.5 million square feet, of the quarterly total. 

“The significant increase in proposed construction activity this quarter is encouraging news for New York City’s economy, workforce, and residents struggling with a housing shortage driven by lack of supply,” Basha Gerhards, REBNY’s executive vice president of public policy, said in a statement.

It’s hopefully good news for New York City’s housing crisis, which has been exacerbated in recent years because of job and population growth outpacing new construction. The multifamily vacancy rate in New York City has been at a stagnant 1.4 percent since 2023.  

During the first quarter of 2026, developers in New York City filed plans for 16,815 proposed multifamily housing units across 281 buildings, according to REBNY. 

REBNY noted that the multifamily figures need to be viewed in the context of the expiring 421a tax abatement program, which offered significant tax exemptions to developers that produced more housing with affordable units. Since sunsetting in 2022, 421a has been replaced with the new tax abatement program, 485x, which has faced significant criticism, particularly when it comes to the construction wage requirement for buildings with more than 100 units. 

“This rebound [in building filings] comes after the significant decline in housing filings that followed the expiration of the 421a tax incentive program in 2022,” Gerhards said. “Sustaining this new level of activity will require a regulatory framework that fosters development and financial tools to support housing production at scale and encourage investment across New York City.”

While things may be looking up for new multifamily building proposals in New York City, it’s not looking so good for the national multifamily market, as construction starts are hitting an all-time low in recent decades.

Across the U.S., multifamily construction reached the lowest quarterly level since 2011 during the first quarter of 2026, as Commercial Observer previously reported. A May report from CoStar Group and Apartments.com found that construction starts declined sharply in Q1 to just 55,000 units nationwide — a 73 percent decrease from the previous peak of construction in early 2022.

However, New York City — as so often is the case — has been the busiest of bees among U.S. cities, as a separate report by CoStar found that the five boroughs had 43,000 units under construction at the start of the year. Gotham had a more robust construction pipeline than other markets across the country, including the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which had 31,000 units under construction. 

Amanda Schiavo can be reached at aschiavo@commercialobserver.com.