1,000-apartment buildings are taking over NYC

The activity comes in response to high demand for rentals from both landlords and tenants. For developers, it’s a safer investment. Apartments rent faster than they can sell, and that means steady income for their builders. Hordes of tenants also get a sweet deal: new buildings packed with amenities — and no financial commitment ...

But mega-buildings wielding hundreds of apartments also pack an urban-planning punch. There’s a chance these huge rentals will decrease density in their immediate vicinity — if they’re higher-income folks with smaller households or younger people without families, says Patrick Lamson-Hall, a research scholar at NYU’s Marron Institute of Urban Management. Still, he adds that nearby resources, like public transportation, could feel increased pressure from masses of residents.