A Manhattan judge ordered New York City to produce written communications with the Rent Guidelines Board from Jan. 1 through June 26 as landlords seek evidence that Mayor Zohran Mamdani improperly influenced the board's June 25 decision to freeze rents. The order excludes internal mayoral and board-staff messages. Landlords argue the 0% increase affecting about 1 million rent-stabilized apartments was predetermined; the city and board defend the freeze as necessary for tenants. The freeze remains set to take effect Oct. 1 while the case continues.
Judge Orders NYC To Produce Rent-Guidelines Communications Amid Lawsuit Over Mamdani's Rent-Freeze Pledge
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani attends a news conference at the headquarters of the NYPD on January 06, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
A Manhattan judge has ordered New York City to turn over written communications between City Hall and the Rent Guidelines Board as part of a landlord lawsuit that claims Mayor Zohran Mamdani improperly influenced the board's decision to freeze rents.
New York State Supreme Court Justice Brendan Lantry granted limited discovery, directing the city to produce written messages and documents exchanged with the Rent Guidelines Board covering Jan. 1 through June 26. The court specifically excluded internal exchanges between Mayor Mamdani and his staff and internal communications among board members and their staffs.
"The question naturally arises: How would the Mayor comply with his 'guarantee' to the voters to 'freeze' the rent unless he, or his staff, communicated with the Board to ensure that the Board refrained from imposing any rental increase?" Lantry wrote.
The ruling is the latest development in a lawsuit filed by landlords in July seeking to overturn the board's June 25 decision to impose a 0% increase for both one- and two-year leases affecting roughly 1 million rent-stabilized apartments. The board set those 0% adjustments for leases beginning between Oct. 1, 2026, and Sept. 30, 2027.
Mamdani, who campaigned on a pledge to freeze rents, appointed six of the nine members of the Rent Guidelines Board in February. At the time of the appointments, City Hall emphasized the board's independence in setting annual rent adjustments.
Landlords argue the board failed to meaningfully weigh property owners' financial conditions and instead reached a predetermined outcome favored by Mayor Mamdani. The city and the board counter that the freeze reflects tenants' limited ability to absorb additional increases and that many landlords could manage without a rent hike.
"The court acknowledges that discovery in a special proceeding is rare," Lantry added, calling it "unprecedented" that a mayoral candidate would publicly promise an independent board would freeze rents after his election.
Randy Mastro, the attorney representing the landlords, said the communications sought could bolster their contention that the rent-setting process had a predetermined outcome. The lawsuit asks the court to invalidate the rent freeze and to compel the board to reconsider its decision.
The 0% adjustment remains scheduled to take effect Oct. 1 while the legal challenge proceeds.
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