Landlord v. Tenant
July 27, 2017
RENT OVERCHARGE
Landlord Not Required to Seek Lowest Cost for IAIs
Tenant complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant and ordered landlord to refund $89, including interest. Tenant appealed and lost. The DRA had calculated the legal rent based on a vacancy increase, longevity increase,...
Feature
June 22, 2017
When a Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) inspector visits your building in response to a tenant’s complaint, the inspector won’t simply check the problem the tenant has complained about. The inspector will also check the tenant’s apartment for six defects...
Management Basics
June 22, 2017
You must file an Annual Apartment Registration application with the DHCR for every rent-stabilized apartment you own by July 31, 2017, using the DHCR’s online Owner Rent Regulation Application system. As in past years, the penalty for not filing is stiff: You can’t collect a rent...
In the News
June 22, 2017
Steve Croman, an owner of 140 buildings who’s known for harassing his tenants, pleaded guilty recently to charges of fraudulently refinancing loans and committing tax fraud. Under the terms of his plea, Croman will serve one year on Rikers Island and is forced to pay a $5 million tax...
In the News
June 22, 2017
The NYU Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy recently published its annual State of New York City’s Housing and Neighborhoods report. The report provides a compendium of 2016 data and analysis about New York City’s housing, land use, demographics, and quality of life for each...
In the News
June 22, 2017
On May 18, the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) presented the NYC Water Board with its recommended approach to billing rates for the coming year. The DEP recommended that the board take no action on water rates. And at a public hearing on June 16th, the Water Board confirmed that...
Landlord v. Tenant
June 22, 2017
LOFTS
Buyouts of Prior Loft Tenants Permanently Excluded Units from Rent Regulation
The Loft Board found that residential units in a building qualified as interim multiple dwellings (IMDs) under the Loft Law but weren’t subject to rent stabilization upon prior landlord’s purchase of...
Feature
May 24, 2017
No owner likes to get hit with a rent overcharge order. And it’s worse if the Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) orders you to pay triple damages on top of that. But the DHCR shouldn’t hit you with triple damages in every case where it finds an overcharge. If you can prove...
Q & A
May 24, 2017
Q A rent-controlled tenant is vacating. There are eight apartments in my building. The other seven apartments were previously rent controlled or rent stabilized. As they became vacant, I renovated each apartment and then rented them, between the years of 2009 and 2012. They are currently all...
In the News
May 24, 2017
The City Council unanimously passed Intro 1218, which was proposed by City Councilman Vincent Gentile. The bill imposes stiff penalties on owners for illegal conversions. It targets owners of homes classified as “aggravated illegal conversions,” by imposing a $15,000 violation per three...
