New Harlem Affordable Housing Offers Rents As Low As $362

HARLEM, NY — An affordable housing lottery has launched for a new building in Central Harlem, offering rarely-seen rents as low as $362 per month.

The building, Balton Commons, is a 32-unit development under construction on West 126th Street between Frederick Douglass and Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Boulevards.

It was listed this week on Housing Connect, including dozens of deeply affordable units.

The cheapest are four Section 8 units available to people making up to 30% of the area median income. To apply for those, applicants must qualify for the Section 8 program.

Another 28 units are also available, consisting of studios, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments. Rents are as low as $362 for two of the studios, or $465 for the cheapest one-bedroom apartment.

The mixed-use building will also have retail, office and community space. Formerly the site of Mandela community garden, construction began last year by developers Lemor Realty Corporation and Apex Building Group.

The building was finance with a construction loan from TD Bank, as well as subsidies from the city's Housing Preservation Department and a 9% low income housing tax credit from HPD. The entire project cost about $22 million to build, developers said.

The building is slated to be completed this year. Half of the units will be reserved for residents of Community Board 10, in Central Harlem.

To learn more or apply for the lottery, view the listing on Housing Connect.

To request an application by mail, send a self-addressed envelope to P.O. Box 556, 217 West 140th St. New York, NY 10030