Homeless New Yorkers Lead a Push for Better Rental Vouchers

Until recently, New York City's local housing vouchers only covered about $1,250 in rent; the median rent on a NYC apartment is $2,600. Activism from current and formerly homeless New Yorkers helped change that.

2 minute read

June 9, 2021, 7:00 AM PDT

By rkaufman


Subway Homeless

rblfmr / Shutterstock

Milton Perez has spent years in New York’s shelter system, often sleeping in dormitory-style rooms with up to 20 other people and just three or four feet of space on either side of his bed. Last May, as part of the city’s emergency response to the Covid-19 pandemic, he moved into a hotel in Brownsville, a neighborhood in Brooklyn, where he now has one roommate and quite a bit more space. Then in June, he secured a housing voucher through a program called CityFHEPS, short for Family Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement.

Theoretically that voucher would allow him to find an apartment on the private market. But the maximum rent it covers is so limited — $1,265 a month for a single person — that Perez has been unable to put the voucher to use. The median rent in New York is $2,600, according to StreetEasy; the only apartments that rent for as low as $1,265 a month are the ones that developers of new buildings are required to set aside for low-income tenants, Perez says, and those units are still scarce. In fact, according to a report in City Limits, only 4-5% of voucher recipients are able to secure an apartment.

“If you’re lucky enough to find a low-income [unit], you won the lottery,” Perez says.

Last year, Perez began working with the group VOCAL-NY on a campaign to get the city to raise the amount of rent that the CityFHEPS program would cover. VOCAL-NY and a coalition of housing and homelessness groups pushed to get the city to match the subsidies in the federal Section 8 voucher program, which covers up to $1,945 a month for a single person in New York. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio reportedly said he wouldn’t support the effort until the state committed to raising the limits on its own version of the vouchers, which have separate eligibility requirements. But advocates say they’ve had a veto-proof majority of the city council in support of the bill for months. And in May, the council finally voted to approve the bill, known as Intro 146, by a vote of 46-2.

Tuesday, June 8, 2021 in Next City

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

July 14, 2025 - Smart Cities Dive

Worker in yellow safety vest and hard hat looks up at servers in data center.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power

Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

July 18 - Inside Climate News

Former MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood standing in front of MARTA HQ with blurred MARTA sign visible in background.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns

MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

July 18 - WABE

Rendering of proposed protected bikeway in Santa Clara, California.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant

A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.

July 17 - San José Spotlight