Editing Openai/696a591f-d750-8006-8907-5e4de0290571 (section)

==== 8) “~2.4M units are rotting… 50k ‘ghost apartments’ padlocked now, maybe 100k soon” ====

Verdict: false on scale; the underlying issue exists but the numbers are badly off.

The strongest vetted evidence here is the NYC Comptroller’s 2024 analysis of stabilized vacancies:
* Rent-stabilized units “vacant but not available for rent for any reason” were 26,310 in 2023 (down from 42,860 in 2021). NYC Comptroller's Office<ref>{{cite web|title=NYC Comptroller's Office|url=https://comptroller.nyc.gov/wp-content/uploads/documents/Accurately-Assessing-and-Effectively-Addressing-Vacancies-in-NYCs-Rent-Stabilized-Housing-Stock.pdf|publisher=NYC Comptroller's Office|access-date=2026-01-17}}</ref>
* Units deemed “dilapidated or otherwise uninhabitable” were just over 3,000 in 2023 (down from 11,500 in 2021). NYC Comptroller's Office<ref>{{cite web|title=NYC Comptroller's Office|url=https://comptroller.nyc.gov/wp-content/uploads/documents/Accurately-Assessing-and-Effectively-Addressing-Vacancies-in-NYCs-Rent-Stabilized-Housing-Stock.pdf|publisher=NYC Comptroller's Office|access-date=2026-01-17}}</ref>
* The report estimates the number of low-rent stabilized units held vacant due to inability to make repairs is likely fewer than 2,000. NYC Comptroller's Office<ref>{{cite web|title=NYC Comptroller's Office|url=https://comptroller.nyc.gov/wp-content/uploads/documents/Accurately-Assessing-and-Effectively-Addressing-Vacancies-in-NYCs-Rent-Stabilized-Housing-Stock.pdf|publisher=NYC Comptroller's Office|access-date=2026-01-17}}</ref>

So: there are “offline” units, but not on the order of 50k padlocked because the math doesn’t pencil, and certainly not “2.4 million rotting.”