NEW YORK (AP) — Gulhayo Yuldosheva says she often worries that the mold in her Bronx apartment might be sickening her kids. Her downstairs neighbor, Marina Quiroz, deals with regular rat infestations and leaks that go unfixed. And tenant Tommy Rodriguez, who uses a wheelchair, says he was forced to “slide down the steps, like a kid.” during a monthslong elevator outage.

Several of the embattled neighbors attended a recent “rental ripoff” hearing hosted by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. They’re hopeful that his promised crackdown on “bad landlords” will bring about changes, even as they acknowledge the many challenges ahead.

One major hurdle for many frustrated New York City renters is that they don’t know who actually owns their building.

This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.