Streetwise New York offers tours of “old and new immigrant New York.” We sent reporter Cristina DC Pastor and audio producer Dimple Patel to check out the tour in the city’s largest borough.
Washington Heights, a traditionally immigrant neighborhood in Upper Manhattan.
Immigrants are finding it “harder than ever” to access safe and affordable housing in New York City, says a recent study published by a group of pro-immigrant organizations.
For the study, “Confronting the Housing Squeeze: Challenges Facing Immigrant Tenants, and What New York Can Do,” researchers surveyed 541 immigrant New Yorkers to talk about affordability, housing conditions, access to subsidized housing, and other indicators. The study was conducted by the Pratt Center for Community Development, with the New York Immigrant Housing Collaborative, which includes seven pro-immigrant groups. [You can download a pdf of the report clicking here.]
“Immigrant renters in New York City confront severe challenges finding safe, decent, and affordable housing,” the report said. “…(B)y almost every measure, immigrant tenants face housing problems to a degree much greater than native-born New Yorkers.” According to the report, 37 percent of the city’s population is foreign born.
“… (E)ven as they have brought new energy and investment to neighborhoods, many of these newcomers have ended up in overcrowded, illegal, expensive, or unhealthy living conditions.”
