New York City is once again at the center of investor attention. Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani’s sweeping housing policy proposals — including a city-wide rent freeze, expanded public housing, and higher taxes on high-income landlords — have unsettled the commercial real-estate sector.
Industry leaders warn that the plan could deter institutional investment, especially from hedge funds, REITs, and large-scale developers already battling rising borrowing costs.
But while traditional real-estate investors brace for impact, crypto-aligned capital may be quietly repositioning. With real-world assets (RWA) gaining traction in decentralized finance, policy uncertainty in the property market could accelerate tokenization of real estate — turning illiquid assets into fractionalized digital holdings on blockchain platforms.
Market Snapshot
| Metric | Value / Trend | Change |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. median asking rent (Sept 2025) | $1,759 | ↓ 3.2 % YoY |
| Commercial property lending volume | $53 B | ↓ 12 % YoY |
| Tokenized real-estate market cap | $738 M | ↑ 18 % QoQ |
Analyst View:
“When regulation undermines yield predictability, blockchain tokenization provides an alternative route to liquidity and diversification,” notes market strategist Alana Reyes.
