Hudson Yards’s first affordable housing lottery offers apartments from $858/month

107 affordable apartments are up for grabs within 15 Hudson Yards

While the majority of the Hudson Yards megaproject is skewed toward a "luxury" audience—multimillion dollar condos, high-end shops, and upscale restaurants—a small chunk of the $20 billion development will be given over to affordable apartments. (Approximately 400 of them, to be exact, with around 4,000 total apartments in the works.)

Most of those won't be available until the megaproject's second phase gets underway (timeline on that is still TBD), but as of this week, the first batch of below market-rate units is now in the city's affordable housing lottery. These 107 affordable units are within 15 Hudson Yards, the skyscraper designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in collaboration with Rockwell Group.

As for what "affordable" means here: The available apartments are set aside for those making 50 to 60 percent of the area median income, so they'll rent from $858/month (for a studio on the lower end) to $1,350/month for a two-bedroom on the higher end. They'll be open to those making between $31,303 and $62,580 per year, depending on household size.

The available units are a mix of studios, one-, and two-bedrooms, with the most inventory on the larger side of things—there are 51 two-bedrooms available at the 60 percent AMI band. The notice from NYC's Department of Housing Preservation and Development notes that residents will have access to some building amenities—laundry room, kids' play room, a gym—but it's unclear whether the tower's incredibly posh perks (including a screening room and private dining rooms) are part of that.

15 Hudson Yards topped out in February, and is well on its way toward welcoming residents by the end of the year. Many components of the larger megaproject—including the Vessel and the shops and restaurants—will follow in the spring of 2019.

The deadline to apply is December 13, and residents of Manhattan's Community Board 4 will get preference. You can find all the details on how to apply at NYC Housing Connect.