Why Are Many New York Apartments Empty? Rent Laws.

Ms. Gelinas, a contributing Opinion writer, is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a contributing editor of City Journal.

In Upper Manhattan, two units sit empty in two well-maintained, century-old mid-rise elevator buildings. One, a four- or five-bedroom unit with a large kitchen and midday light spilling through the back room, would be the perfect space for a family with young children or for a group of roommates; it would rent for about $3,700 on the open market. The other, a ground-floor one-bedroom, would make a cozy home for a single adult or a couple,........

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