By Hank Russell
On January 13, Governor Kathy Hochul made affordability one of the major themes in her State of the State address. She laid out a platform that she said will “put money back in your pockets.” She also announced a “Let Them Build” initiative that will eliminate the red tape involved in building residential developments. While some believe these are good ideas, others wonder if this will really solve the affordability crisis.
According to WalletHub, New York is near the bottom, ranking 47th in socioeconomic status, just above California, Louisiana and Nevada, and 47th in housing affordability, just below Nevada, Hawaii and California. Here on Long Island, the signs are more obvious: the most recent data from OneKeyMLSⓇ shows that November home prices have risen.
In Nassau County, the median sales price was $840,000. That is up slightly from October, when it was at $837,000 and an 8.4% increase from the November 2024 figure of $775,000, according to OneKeyMLS. In Suffolk, prices rose 3.42% to $725,000 in November from $701,000 the previous month and 11.1% from November 2024, when it was at $652,500.
Long Island Life & Politics is currently conducting its own poll on housing affordability. When asked why they couldn’t afford a home, two-thirds said the prices are too high and one-third it’s a combination of prices, lack of savings and personal debt. (Results were as of press time.)
WalletHub also reported that childcare costs in New York State are the second highest, next to New Mexico. Chip Lupo, WalletHub’s analyst, cited data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that it would cost a family $320,000 to raise a child up to the age of 18.
“Raising a family has become significantly more expensive in recent years as the cost of living has risen quickly,” Lupo said. “In light of the expensive nature of being a parent and the responsibility it entails, it’s important to live [somewhere] that is affordable while still providing quality health care, education, safety and opportunities for enrichment.”
In order to address rising childcare costs, Hochul announced a program to make it more affordable. As previously reported in LILP, Hochul held a press conference with New York City Zohran Mamdani on January 8 as they announced that universal childcare will be available to all children in New York State under five years old and free childcare to two-year-olds in New York City. While Hochul explained what the program entails, who will be eligible and how much the state will invest in these programs, she did not explain how it will be paid for.
“I have always supported New York’s families, and I understand the financial strain childcare places on working parents,” Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square), the ranking Republican member on the Assembly Ways and Means Committee, told LILP. “But behind every major decision coming out of Albany, whether you agree with it or not, comes a price tag that will have to be sorted out in the state budget.”
Then, there are utility costs. Hochul said in her State of the State that she will tackle utility costs by demanding strict fiscal discipline from utilities, empowering the State to fight more effectively for lower bills, and supporting New Yorkers to make energy-saving investments like weatherization and smart thermostats.
Zilvinas Silenas, the president and CEO of The Empire Center, a think tank, said this will not work. “Instead of addressing the flaws in New York’s energy policy, Hochul is choosing to vilify utilities, pressure the state’s independent regulator, and use taxpayer money to hide the fact that New Yorkers pay some of the highest electricity prices in the country,” he said.
Meanwhile, PSEG announced that ratepayers are expected to pay $6 more on their bills this month. The utility cited higher power supply charges and increases in annual delivery and daily service charges. National Grid customers saw their natural gas bills go up 1.9%. However, LIPA said that customers are expected to see a $6.50-per-month reduction in their bills as a result of “lower projected power supply costs and reduced usage.”
While these aforementioned issues have been addressed, it now remains whether the affordability crisis can be solved.