It’s difficult to keep track of the various painting requirements that apply to building owners. If you own a building with three or more apartments or own a one- or two-family building with a tenant-occupied apartment, you must comply with Sections 27-2013 and 27-2014 of the city’s...
On Jan. 23, the DHCR issued new fuel cost adjustment factors for rent-controlled apartments for the 2015 calendar year. The prices are based on a study of home heating oil prices provided by the NYC Rent Guidelines Board oil survey, a NYS Energy Research and Development Authority report, rate...
Rent-regulated apartments with a legal or maximum monthly rent that reach or exceed $2,500 as of May 1, 2015, may be petitioned for high-income rent deregulation this year. Current exceptions to luxury deregulation are buildings currently receiving J-51 or 421-a tax benefits and rent-controlled...
Tenants can install and maintain their own locks on their apartment entrance doors in addition to the lock supplied by the owner. The lock may be no more than three inches in circumference, and tenants must provide owners with a duplicate key upon request. Any lease provision requiring a tenant...
Every Jan. 15, the NYC Department of Finance (DOF) sends to each owner a tentative assessment for the next fiscal year (2016, in the current case) conveying the market value of the lot, including improvements, the actual assessed value of the lot, and, most important, the value upon which the...
The NYS Electronic Equipment Recycling and Reuse Act, which was signed into law by the governor on May 28, 2010, took effect in full on Jan. 1, 2015. Overseeing the law’s enforcement is the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Businesses and households are no longer allowed...
When a tenant passes away or moves out of your rent-controlled apartment without leaving behind any occupants who qualify as tenant-successors, the apartment becomes decontrolled or no longer subject to rent-control laws. If that apartment is in a building built before Jan. 1, 1974, containing...
In November, in a 5-2 vote, New York State’s highest court ruled that a lease for a rent-regulated apartment is a public benefit, just like disability or unemployment benefits, and cannot be seized as an asset in a personal bankruptcy.
Tenants sometimes treat their apartments as if they own them, making alterations without your consent. For example, a tenant may remove the existing kitchen cabinets and install his own. This could cause big problems, especially if the tenant’s alterations aren’t done properly. If...
Local Law 43 and other state legislation regulating heating oils (No. 4 and No. 6) in New York City were put in place to address the public health hazard presented by these fuels. The rules affecting types of oil used in boilers were passed in April 2011 as part of an update to Mayor Bloomberg...
To implement the January 2014 amendments to the Rent Stabilization Code, the Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) has issued revised versions of its rent-stabilized Renewal Lease Form, as well as the New York City Lease Rider for Rent-...
Starting Dec. 3, 2014, all residential leases issued in New York State must include a notice advising tenants whether there is a sprinkler system at the “leased premises.” If there is a sprinkler system, the owner must also state the last maintenance and inspection dates of the...
