For centuries, New York City was the place strivers came to make something of their lives \u2014 where smarts, hard work and grit turned pushcarts into prosperity, and where the streets were paved with gold for those willing to mine them.<\/p>\n
Success in New York was always tougher than anyplace else. Making it here meant you could make it anywhere.<\/p>\n
Only the very poor received charity or government assistance, and only enough to help them get on their feet and start helping themselves.<\/p>\n
Zohran Mamdani has a very different philosophy.<\/p>\n
Much of his \u201caffordability agenda<\/a>\u201d isn\u2019t targeted to the neediest \u2014 but to New Yorkers who should be paying their own way.<\/p>\n Take\u00a0fare-free buses<\/a>: The city already offers a half-price \u201cFair Fares<\/a>\u201d program for low-income bus and subway riders.<\/p>\n Free buses would be available to everyone, including well-paid professionals and even loathed billionaires.<\/a><\/p>\n Food stamps, too, are means-tested, but city-run\u00a0grocery stores<\/a>\u00a0wouldn\u2019t stop millionaires from scooping up avocados at below-market prices.<\/p>\n Plenty of wealthy people already\u00a0live in\u00a0rent-stabilized apartments<\/a>, so freezing the rent would benefit some rich tenants at landlords\u2019 expense, even those small landlords who are less well-off than their tenants.<\/p>\n But Mamdani isn\u2019t asking everyone to share the burden evenly by raising taxes across the board. He wants to\u00a0tax\u00a0corporations<\/a> and the wealthiest.<\/p>\n It\u2019s welfare for the upper-middle class, with no strings attached.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also a paradigm shift, a belief that government \u2014 not our own efforts \u2014 should guarantee security.<\/p>\n The traditional American free market rewards those who work hard, delay gratification and take risks.<\/p>\n Those efforts benefit wider society \u2014 making companies more productive, adding to the tax base through growth and extending new opportunities for others.<\/p>\n In much of the country, homeownership is the reward for these sacrifices \u2014 a marker of having earned one\u2019s place in society and holding a stake in a stable neighborhood. In rental-heavy New York, paying rent for a comfortable place confers a similar status.<\/p>\n Every morning, the NY POSTcast <\/a>offers a deep dive into the headlines with the Post\u2019s signature mix of politics, business, pop culture, true crime and everything in between. Subscribe here!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Rent stabilization, by contrast, provides these benefits through government mandate<\/a>. Stabilized tenants can pass along a legal entitlement to live in the below-market apartment to family members and even in some cases to non-related co-residents.<\/p>\n Unsurprisingly, these tenants rarely give up their sweetheart deals, making it harder for younger New Yorkers to find a foothold.<\/p>\n Doubling down on these programs would make New Yorkers more dependent on them \u2014 and on the government.<\/p>\n As always, those who benefit from a government program have a strong stake in seeing it continue \u2014 and they vote.<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s proposals are tailor-made for his base of young, highly educated, far-left NYC newcomers. These bright and capable young voters aren\u2019t chasing big dreams.<\/p>\n By many measures, they experience higher rates of mental health\u00a0challenges<\/a>\u00a0and lower well-being<\/a> at\u00a0work\u00a0\u2014 and are turning to the government for a more comfortable, secure life.<\/p>\n But New York has never been content with \u201cgood enough.\u201d<\/p>\n Is it difficult to buy a house or afford rent, especially for the young? Absolutely.<\/p>\n But is it the answer to hand more power to City Hall and let it determine more of our lives?<\/p>\n The government\u2019s track record isn\u2019t pretty.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tGet opinions and commentary from our columnists\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSubscribe to our daily Post Opinion newsletter!\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n The single biggest reason why housing is so expensive in NYC is that, for decades, City Hall has prevented the private sector from building enough supply<\/a> to meet demand.<\/p>\n And in the housing stock the government does control or influence, residents aren\u2019t thriving.<\/p>\n Rent-stabilized apartment stock is rapidly\u00a0deteriorating. Landlords are prohibited from collecting enough in rent increases to cover higher operating and maintenance costs.<\/p>\n