Good morning. It’s Thursday. Today we’ll look at a report that reached some stark conclusions about affordability in New York City.
The New York City Comptroller’s office released a report on Wednesday that offered a bleak outlook on the affordability crisis gripping the five boroughs.
The report, released by Mark Levine, the city comptroller, showed that the wealthy in New York have gotten wealthier since the pandemic, while the standard of living for the middle class has stalled as costs have continued to increase.
“Part of why the bottom 90 percent is stagnating, even as their wages are going up, is that it’s not enough to keep up with the cost of living here,” Levine said.
Roughly 50 families in New York City make up the top .001 percent of earners. That group experienced the most dramatic income growth of any city tax bracket between 2019 and 2024, almost doubling average income from about $315 million in 2019 to approximately $600 million in 2024.
“The 1 Percent” — made famous by the Occupy Wall Street movement of 2011 — is still faring quite well 15 years later. Members of that group boosted their incomes from an average of $2.9 million before the pandemic to $4 million in 2024. Of all the income earned in the city in 2024, that group took over a third of it.
The report found that for jobs with midrange pay, employment has been dropping, while there are significantly more low-wage jobs. It paints an alarming picture of everyday life in New York City as the cost of rent and other necessities soar, causing roughly half of city households to report that they can’t keep up with basic costs like housing, food and transportation.
New York stands out among the country’s largest cities in recording a significant decline in median household income since 2019.
Weather
Showers and thunderstorms are expected today as temperatures soar near 86. Look for partly cloudy skies tonight along with rain and a low around 72.
ALTERNATE-SIDE PARKING
In effect until Monday (Labor Day).
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Thank goodness no civilian was killed.” — Stuart Schwartz, a retired New York Police Department captain, on the shooting of Pamela Cisneros in a busy section of Midtown Manhattan by police officers. Cisneros had stabbed two people, one fatally, in Times Square.
The latest New York news
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New rules on technology use: The Department of Education announced that elementary and middle-school students in city public schools are barred from using artificial intelligence, though its use will be permitted in high schools. Teachers will not be able to ask A.I. to grade assignments.
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Thousands arrested in New York immigration operation: Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin announced that immigration officials had arrested 2,197 people between July 27 and Aug. 29 as part of a federal immigration crackdown in New York called Operation Rotten Apple.
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Eala has reached icon status among Filipinos: As Alex Eala, the young Filipino tennis star, starts her long-shot run to win the U.S. Open, momentum is building in Little Manila, a quiet micro-neighborhood in Queens known as the heart and soul of Filipino culture.
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Hochul and Mamdani call on Trump to release federal funds: Gov. Kathy Hochul accused President Trump of “abandoning” his home state by continuing to withhold $87 million in counterterrorism funds that would be used for bomb squads, emergency management and hazmat teams.
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An East Coast odyssey by train, ferry and bus: A self-described transit romantic set out to visit prime summer destinations using only public transportation. Would getting there really be half the fun?
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Has the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ affected your finances? The New York Times would like to hear from readers as to whether President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Act has had any effect on your household budget.
METROPOLITAN diary
On the F
Dear Diary:
I was on an F train hurtling toward Jackson Heights.
From behind me I heard a woman ask someone, “What would ever possess you to play the ukulele while making tomato sauce?”
Then, as if to affirm just how unseemly this behavior was, she added, “We are in Queens, New York, not on planet Mars.”
Although I was curious about who was speaking and to whom, I resisted the urge to turn around and look. It seemed best to leave this New York interlude shrouded in mystery.
— Stephen Brewer
Illustrated by Agnes Lee. Tell us your New York story here and read more Metropolitan Diary here.
Glad we could get together here. C.F.
Davaughnia Wilson and Ed Shanahan contributed to New York Today. You can reach the team at [email protected].
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The post Where the Rich Get Richer and Everyone Else Just Gets By appeared first on New York Times.
