Mamdani Legalizes Squatting as NYC's Largest Landlord Abandons Thousands of Apartments (Video)

In this 16 April 2026 video, host Cash Jordan talks about how squatting in NYC owned and operated apartment complexes is on the rise, which means gang members and criminals get free homes while families live on the street.

The Mayor Zohran Mamdani administration’s aggressive new stance toward negligent landlords refers to the mayor’s push for public stewardship and tenant-led management of distressed properties. The figure of thousands of apartments primarily refers to the portfolio of Pinnacle Group, a major NYC landlord that filed for bankruptcy in 2025 after facing foreclosure and thousands of housing violations. The firm, led by Joel Wiener, put thousands of units into bankruptcy protection as banks sought to foreclose on their buildings across Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. Mayor Mamdani’s administration attempted to block the sale of these units to Summit Property Group—another landlord on the “Worst Landlords” list—arguing that the city should take stewardship of the buildings. A federal judge ultimately allowed the sale to Summit to proceed for $451 million.

The claim that Mamdani is ‘legalizing squatting’ references his administration’s policy of holding bad landlords accountable by threatening to seize their properties and transition them to public or tenant ownership. Mamdani has proposed using unpaid fines and housing violations as a mechanism to bring distressed rental properties under city control. The administration has reinvigorated the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants and appointed housing activist Cea Weaver as its director to help tenants organize and potentially take over the management of neglected buildings. Contrary to the “legalization” claim, state lawmakers actually introduced bills in 2024 (such as Assembly Bill 6894) specifically to define squatters more clearly as trespassers and make it easier for homeowners to remove them.

The administration has already taken high-profile steps against other large landlords. In early 2026, the city secured a $2.1 million settlement with A&E Real Estate Holdings to resolve thousands of code violations across 14 buildings.  The 2025 “Worst Landlord Watchlist” featured Margaret Brunn and Donald Hastings of A&E Real Estate in the top spots, with nearly 9,000 open violations combined.

https://youtu.be/rYN_moXmmP0