In the wake of New York City’s newly inaugurated socialist mayor pledging a firm stance on housing issues, a significant legal development has emerged. A prominent landlord has consented to a $2.1 million settlement, marking a decisive moment in the city’s ongoing housing debate.

A&E Real Estate has agreed to this substantial payout following allegations of over 4,000 violations related to building conditions across 14 properties located in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens.

In a statement made at a Jackson Heights building, which alone had 220 outstanding violations, Mayor Zohran Mamdani declared, “City Hall will not idly accept this type of illegality, nor will we permit unscrupulous individuals to harass tenants without consequence.”

The mayor, a democratic socialist, criticized the landlord for what he described as a “callous disregard” for the welfare of their tenants.

“Thousands of our residents are enduring hardships in rent-stabilized units managed by A&E,” Mamdani continued, emphasizing the daily struggles faced by these individuals. This settlement underscores the new administration’s commitment to addressing tenant grievances and enforcing housing standards.

He added that the landlord incurred more than 140,000 total violations – including 35,000 in the last year.

Mamdani, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist, explained that his administration was ‘not afraid’ to flex its power.

‘If your landlord does not responsibly steward your home, city government will step in,’ he said.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, announced a $2.1million settlement against A&E Real Estate for violations in three boroughs

Mamdani did his press conference inside 35-64 84th Street in Jackson Heights, one of the buildings with violations 

The seven-figure settlement also imposed injunctions on A&E Real Estate, barring the landlord from ‘harassing their tenants.’

‘This is the kind of progress that for too long has not been prioritized by our city government,’ Mamdani said. ‘And I want to make clear that this is what I want New Yorkers to expect from our administration every single day.’

The socialist mayor claimed that children were unable to sleep because of a lack of heating, dozens of elevators were out of order, and apartments were ‘festering with mold.’

Mamdani said the settlement was ‘not only one of good governance, it’s one of a moral imperative.’

He also reiterated that his administration would hold ‘rental rip-off’ hearings in all of New York City’s boroughs within the first 100 days of his mayorship.

Critics of Mamdani’s policies have shared concerns that his views on housing could lead to an exodus of wealthy New Yorkers leaving the city.

The self-described democratic socialist ran on an agenda that included freezing rents, raising the minimum wage, universal child care and a government-run grocery stores program.

‘If this is truly the beginning of a new era, then let it be one defined by a city hall that is unafraid to take on those who would harass and mistreat New Yorkers, and that governs with the people’s needs as its north star,’ Mamdani said.

A&E’s Executive Chair, Douglas Eisenberg (left), gave $125,000 to Mamdani’s mayoral opponent Andrew Cuomo while they were on the campaign trial

Mamdani’s lead tenant advocate Cea Weaver cried after Daily Mail approached her earlier this month. She previously made posts urging to ‘impoverish the white middle class’

New York City’s investigation initially found ‘widespread unsafe conditions’ at four A&E properties. That was escalated when the landlord failed to address the issues.

More than 1,000 violations have been addressed over the course of litigation, according to Mamdani’s administration.

The city has also made $488,000 worth of repairs to date.

Mamdani warned that his administration would keep a close eye on the landlord going forward.

‘While this settlement covers 14 buildings, I also want to make very clear: we are aware of issues across the entirety of A&E Realty’s portfolio and we will continue to monitor their conduct,’ he said.

The mayor added: ‘If a landlord cannot get to that settlement [and] continues to operate outside of the law, then we will hold them to account in additional ways.’

A&E CEO Donald Hastings said he was ‘pleased to have settled all legal issues with the city and have agreed upon a repair plan with the housing department that we are already delivering on,’ Gothamist reported. 

‘In every building we’ve purchased, we’ve invested in replacing boilers, rehabbing elevators and fixing tens of thousands of longstanding violations,’ an A&E Real Estate spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

Weaver was at Friday’s press conference. She shook hands with the New York City mayor before he took the podium

A&E’s Executive Chair, Douglas Eisenberg, gave $125,000 to Mamdani’s mayoral opponent Andrew Cuomo while they were on the campaign trial.  

Dozens of tenants in Jackson Heights are suing the company to force repairs.

Mamdani was flanked by his new tenant advocate Cea Weaver for Friday’s press conference announcing the fine.

Weaver previously made posts urging to ‘impoverish the white middle class’ and labeling homeownership as ‘racist’ and ‘failed public policy.’

She called to ‘seize private property’ and described homeownership as a ‘weapon of white supremacy masquerading as ‘wealth building public policy’ in 2017.

Weaver, the executive director of the city’s Office to Protect Tenants, has also strongly advocated for increased social housing.

In an undated video that resurfaced earlier this month, she said her goal was to ‘undermine the institution of homeownership.’

Weaver did not speak at Friday’s press conference, although she could be seen smiling and shaking hands with Mamdani before he took the podium.

She previously lauded Mamdani’s upcoming ‘rental rip-off’ hearings, saying they would ‘give working people across the five boroughs a microphone to highlight the challenges they face.’ 

‘For too long, tenants have been ripped off without recourse or protection,’ Weaver added.

The Daily Mail has reached out to A&E Real Estate and Mamdani’s office for further comment.