For seven years, NYC Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani called a one-bedroom rent-stabilized apartment in Astoria, Queens, home. The $2,300-a-month unit, which his opponents once used as political ammunition during his campaign, symbolized his stance on affordable housing and rent reform. Now, after his surprising win in the New York City mayoral race, Mamdani is set to trade that modest setup for one of the most famous addresses in the city — Gracie Mansion.
Heading to Gracie Mansion?
The contrast could not be sharper. His current apartment, located in a 1920s prewar building known as the Princess Martha, is a simple one-bedroom with a windowed kitchen, hardwood floors with heat and hot water included in the water. It’s considered a typical home of working New Yorkers in Astoria. It is approximately 800 square feet.
The average rent of a one-bedroom in Astoria is $2,895, according to Apartment Advisor.
Across the East River, on the far end of Manhattan’s Upper East Side, awaits an entirely different world: the 226-year-old Gracie Mansion, an 11,000-square-foot landmark with a ballroom, sprawling lawns, and sweeping views of the East River.
Mamdani, 34, told The New Yorker Radio Hour that life in his Queens apartment had grown cramped. “My wife and I have just talked about the fact that a one-bedroom is a little too small for us now,” he said, adding that he had recently spent a morning soaking up water from a leaking sink with towels. Still, when pressed on whether he’ll move into Gracie Mansion, he demurred. “I don’t yet have an answer on where I’m going to be living,” he told NY1, “but I can tell you where I’m going to be working, and that’s City Hall.”
Built in 1799 as the summer retreat of Scottish merchant Archibald Gracie, the mansion has evolved from a family home to a museum and, since 1942, the official mayoral residence. Its transformation into the mayor’s home began under Fiorello La Guardia, who reluctantly moved in during World War II for security reasons. Since then, Gracie Mansion has been home to many of the city’s leaders.
The mansion’s interiors reflect both its Federal-style roots and the personal touches of past mayors. Fiorello La Guardia added a master bedroom and offices; Robert F. Wagner’s administration added the Susan E. Wagner Wing in 1966, featuring a replica 18th-century ballroom for official events. In 1981, Mayor Ed Koch founded the Gracie Mansion Conservancy to preserve and restore the house. Michael Bloomberg later transformed it into a “living museum” in 2002 though he chose to remain in his private townhouse instead of living there.
Bill de Blasio and Chirlane McCray updated the residence with contemporary furniture from West Elm and used it to host exhibitions, while Eric Adams has used it as a venue for cultural celebrations, from Fleet Week to Women’s History Month receptions.
The mansion sits behind high fences monitored by cameras and guarded around the clock by NYPD officers. This will be a lot different from his no-doorman, walk-up apartment in Astoria.
Still, Astoria has helped shape Mamdani’s political identity. The son of Ugandan and Indian immigrants, he has represented the neighborhood in the New York State Assembly since 2021, focusing on tenants’ rights, affordable housing, and public transit. His rent-stabilized apartment, which he found on StreetEasy in 2018 while earning $47,000 a year as a foreclosure-prevention counselor, has often been cited as proof of his connection to the struggles of working-class New Yorkers. “I was looking for an apartment that I could afford on my own,” he once told The New York Times.
Whether Mamdani follows in their footsteps of previous mayors remains to be seen. “I can tell you where I’m going to be working,” he repeated, signaling that City Hall is his current priority.
But one thing is certain: if he does move in, the rent-free mansion (complete with five bedrooms, a ballroom, and a full-time chef) will mark an obvious upgrade from the cramped space of his Queens apartment.
