Under New York's 485-x tax incentive, rental projects of 100 or more units must meet a construction wage floor, so many developers are designing buildings with 99 units or fewer (per MAG Partners). REBNY's pipeline reports show a large share of new filings in the 50 to 99 unit range (REBNY, Q4 2025).
What these buildings look like
Typically 6 to 14 storeys, block or concrete bearing walls or a concrete frame, steel or concrete floors, a stacked unit plan with repeated kitchens and baths, and a cellar with the building's services.
What that means for the takeoff
- Repetition is an opportunity and a risk. A typical floor repeats, but wall types and block sizes often change at certain floors. Count each floor, don't multiply one.
- Margins are thin. Without the wage floor, the budget still has little room for overbuying. One shared quantity, ordered by stage, helps.
- Fit-out counts matter. 99 kitchens and 99 baths add up. Count fixtures and cabinets from the plans, not from the unit count alone.
Setout is built for exactly these buildings. See for owner-builders and construction takeoff for NYC.