In the News

Rent-Stabilized Tenant Ordered to Pay Record High Airbnb Fine

May 22, 2018    
A judge recently ordered a Tribeca rent-stabilized artist to leave her apartment and pay a fine of $185,000 for illegally listing it on Airbnb. The tenant, who paid $1,500 a month for her rent-stabilized two-bedroom apartment, was sued by her landlord in 2014, who claimed she was earning about $4,...
Feature

How to Avoid Violating NYC’s Expanding ‘Tenant Harassment’ Laws

May 9, 2018    
By Eileen O’Toole, Esq.
Feature

Avoid Rent Overcharge Finding If No Rent Was Charged on Base Date

April 19, 2018    
When you defend against a tenant’s rent overcharge complaint, you must prove that you didn’t illegally increase the rent after the apartment’s base date. Section 2520.6(f) of the revised Rent Stabilization Code defines the base date as the date four years before the tenant filed...
Management Basics

Large Building Owners to Submit Benchmarking Data by May 1

April 19, 2018    
Local Law 84 (LL84) requires owners of large buildings to annually measure their energy and water consumption in a process called benchmarking. LL84 standardizes this process by requiring building owners to enter their annual energy and water use in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s...
Management Basics

File RPIE Statements by June 1

April 19, 2018    
The NYC Department of Finance (DOF) requires certain owners of residential properties to file the Real Property Income & Expense Statement (RPIE) every year. The DOF needs income and expense information each year to value your property accurately.
Rent Increases

RGB Releases 2018 Operating Cost, Affordability, Mortgage Reports

April 19, 2018    
The Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) is mandated by law to establish yearly rent adjustments for rent-stabilized apartments in New York City. The board holds an annual series of public meetings and hearings to consider research from staff and testimony from owners, tenants, advocacy groups, and industry...
In the News

NYC Sues Airbnb Over Ignored Subpoena

April 19, 2018    
The New York State Multiple Dwelling Law (MDL) established the standards for all buildings containing three or more dwelling units. The MDL flatly prohibits unhosted rentals of less than 30 days in “Class A” multiple dwellings. These are buildings occupied by three or more families...
In the News

Proposed State Law Would Address Source-of-Income Housing Discrimination

April 19, 2018    
Some state lawmakers in Albany are considering amending the state human rights law to make it illegal to discriminate against tenants based on where they receive their income. The change would include a “lawful source of income” provision that would protect people using government...
In the News

RAB and Apartment Building Workers Union Reach Wage Agreement

April 19, 2018    
Members of 32BJ SEIU, one of the city’s largest labor unions, reached a tentative agreement with the Realty Advisory Board on Labor Relations, a group of building owners in the tristate area. Following a week of negotiations, a strike by janitors, porters, handymen, and doormen was averted...
In the News

New York State and City to Mandate Anti-Sexual Harassment Training for Private Employers

April 19, 2018    
The New York City Council recently approved legislation effective April 1, 2019, intended to combat sexual harassment. The Stop Sexual Harassment in NYC Act mandates that private employers with 15 or more employees in New York City conduct annual sexual harassment training. The New York State...