Podcast Summary: How an NYC Suburb Is Keeping Rents Down

Podcast: The Journal.
Date: August 20, 2025
Hosts: Jessica Mendoza & Ryan Knutson
Featured Guest: Rebecca Pichotto (The Wall Street Journal real estate reporter)

Overview

This episode of The Journal. investigates why the suburb of New Rochelle, just north of New York City, has managed to keep its rent growth remarkably subdued—even as rents in the rest of the NYC area have soared. Journalist Rebecca Pichotto explores how a combination of pro-development policies, streamlined building processes, and strategic public-private partnerships have held rent increases to just 1.6% (compared to 26% in NYC proper since 2020). The episode examines the practical steps the city took, the resulting social dynamics, and considers whether New Rochelle’s model could be replicated elsewhere.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Context: The Housing Crunch

• Cost pressures in NYC: Median rent in NYC is nearly $3,500/month, up 26% since 2020, but in New Rochelle rent has barely risen.

  “The New Rochelle rental market is one of the kind of bastions of relative affordability in the notoriously expensive New York City metro area.”
  — Rebecca Pichotto (00:31)

• New Rochelle’s unique position: Historically a commuter suburb, it's just a 40 minute train ride from Manhattan.

2. The Problem With Development Elsewhere

• Barriers to building:
  • Lengthy environmental reviews
  • Complex zoning regulations
  • Prolonged city council debates and resident pushback, especially from NIMBYs (Not In My Back Yard).

  “It’s just this kind of complex web of red tape that has dragged things out for developers.”
  — Rebecca (03:33)

3. New Rochelle’s Breakthrough Approach

• Pro-development mindset:
  The city “put pro development policy framework first” and prioritized getting things built fast.

  “New Rochelle took a very clear focus and said, we are going to want to get this building done.”
  — Rebecca (05:10)

• Public-private partnership:
  Partnered with developer RXR to create a master plan, which was approved within a year—a process that typically takes 10–15 years elsewhere.

• Form-based zoning and streamlining:
  Broke the city into zones and set clear, standardized project guidelines (building height, parking, affordable units, etc.).

  • Standardized guidelines give developers certainty and allow for a 90-day approval process—drastically faster than the years-long timelines elsewhere.

  “Having this standard set of guidelines gives developers predictability and a level of assurance that a NIMBY lawsuit won’t necessarily derail their project the way it might in another city.”
  — Rebecca (07:00)

• Developer incentives:
  Tax breaks and a streamlined approval process made building “faster, cheaper, and easier.”

4. Results: Growth, Tensions, and Affordability

• Output:

  • 4,500 new units completed in the last decade, with 6,500 more in pipeline/planning—a potential 37% increase in housing stock (08:03).
  • 7,000 new residents have moved in.

  “It was to build more housing. It was to boost the population and bring more people in. They've done that.”
  — Rebecca (10:07)

• Who’s moving in?

  • About a third are arriving from NYC, drawn by “amenitized” apartments (fitness centers, lounges, etc.) that are relatively cheap for Manhattanites but still expensive for locals.
  • Example: $3,600 for a two-bedroom—affordable by NYC standards, still “a lot of money” for long-term locals (09:09).

• Community concerns:

  • Some locals worry about being “left behind" or priced out; new buildings called "sleeper dorms" as newcomers mostly sleep there but spend and work in NYC.
  • Worries about crowded schools, traffic, insufficient downtown retail (11:12).

  “There is a sense that the new development, the revitalization of New Rochelle, it was aimed at bringing new people in... they feel left behind, that the change wasn’t really targeted at them.”
  — Rebecca (10:32)

5. Economic and Policy Impacts

• Economic benefits:
  $2.5 billion invested due to regulatory ease; city reinvesting in infrastructure, food assistance, down payment programs for homeownership (11:58).

• Affordability measures:

  • 10% of new units required to be “affordable”; in practice, 17% of new units are priced below market.
  • City considering rent control as a secondary measure (vs. main strategy in other cities).

  “They still see supply as the way to bring down prices in the long term. But they also see rent control as a potential tool.”
  — Rebecca (13:34)

6. National Implications & Replicability

• Influence on policy elsewhere:

  • Similar deregulatory, pro-building approaches spreading: e.g., California relaxing environmental rules for housing, bipartisan housing reform on Capitol Hill.

  “This idea that...supply as an affordability solution, that’s starting to take off elsewhere.”
  — Rebecca (14:48)

• Political shift:

  • A rare area of bipartisan agreement: both sides “starting to come to terms with the fact that housing, everyone needs it, everyone needs a place to live...” (15:23)

Notable Quotes & Key Moments

• “They built more housing, and as a result...rents fell. It sounds simple, but...it's easier said than done in many cities across the country.”
  — Rebecca (01:21)

• On speed of approval:
  “...the city assures them a 90 day approval process. And that's significantly faster than the 10 to 15 years that some developers say they're waiting elsewhere.” (06:21)

• On resident tensions:
  “Some of the longtime residents...say they can spot the newcomers just walking on the street. They have a different step...” (10:32)

• “New York City money or Manhattan money goes pretty far in New Rochelle. But a local resident...they don't necessarily feel like all of this new development is for them.”
  — Rebecca (12:37)

• On rent control as a tool:
  “Rent control is not their knee-jerk reaction. It's very much a secondary approach to maintaining affordability. They're still development first.” (13:34)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:05–01:16: Introduction to New Rochelle’s rental situation
• 01:16–05:07: Historic barriers to housing development
• 05:07–07:24: How New Rochelle sped up development
• 08:03–10:07: Results—the new housing landscape, who’s moving in
• 10:32–12:37: Local tensions and economic impacts
• 13:11–14:37: Affordable housing policy and rent control
• 14:48–15:23: Broader policy implications and replication elsewhere

Conclusion

New Rochelle shows that aggressive pro-building policies with clear, standardized guidelines can lead to more housing supply and relatively stable rents—even in an expensive metro area. But the suburb’s experience also highlights the tensions that arise as communities change, especially around affordability and who benefits from growth. As more cities look for solutions to the nationwide housing crisis, New Rochelle’s model—focused on supply expansion with affordability set-asides and a secondary role for rent control—may offer valuable lessons.