Billionaire investor Barry Sternlicht stirred a row after saying that New York City could “turn into Mumbai” under newly elected mayor Zohran Mamdani’s proposed rent-freeze and housing policies. Sternlicht is one of America’s most prominent real estate figures. He said Mamdani’s influence in America’s richest city could trigger rent defaults and drive investors out. Mamdani, a democratic socialist, has pushed for policies aimed at taxing the rich — proposals that have not been well received by New York City’s wealthy residents.“Over $100 million, every project in New York has to go union, and it’s super expensive. It leads to extremely expensive housing. And other developers have tried to cut deals with the unions, but they rule New York, and that’s one of the key reasons the blue states are so expensive and they’re so difficult to add supply of housing to, ” the entrepreneur said.“And then the neighbour finds out the neighbour isn’t paying, and they don’t pay … and then you’re basically going to turn New York City into Mumbai,” Sternlicht said in an interview with CNBC Property PlayThe billionaire added his company’s New York team was “for the first time saying maybe we should leave.” His comments went viral and started a debate about housing affordability and investor influence in the city.Sternlicht is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Starwood Capital Group, a global private investment firm he co-founded in 1991. He also heads Starwood Property Trust, one of the largest publicly traded real estate investment trusts in the US. He was born in New York City in 1960 and raised in Connecticut. Sternlicht graduated magna cum laude from Brown University and later earned an MBA from Harvard Business School. His father was a Polish Holocaust survivor, and his mother was a stockbroker and biology teacher.Over the years, Sternlicht has built an empire across real estate, hospitality, and finance, managing assets worth more than US$100 billion. He is credited with launching the W Hotels brand and transforming Starwood into a global powerhouse.
