Feature, Management Basics, New Laws & Regs, Rent Increases, Court Watch, Violations

Local Law 69: Complete Annual Bedbug Reporting by Dec. 31

November 19, 2021    

As a result of Local Law 69 of 2017, apartment building owners are required to file bedbug infestation and treatment reports with HPD annually. Owners must file annually between Dec. 1 and Dec. 31 for the previous year, from November 2020 through October 2021.

What Owners Need to Know About the Landlord Rental Assistance Program

October 18, 2021    

Owners who couldn’t get relief in the original Emergency Rental Assistance Program can now apply for thousands of dollars in aid through a new state program launched on Oct. 7. The Landlord Rental Assistance Program (LRAP) gives eligible recipients payments of up to a year’s worth of...

A 'FAIRER' Way to Pay ECB Fines

October 18, 2021    

Under the Department of Finance’s new Environmental Control Board (ECB) amnesty program, if you have unpaid eligible ECB judgments issued by various city agencies and adjudicated by the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH), you may be able to save up to 75 percent and have...

DHCR Increases A/C Rent Surcharge for 2021–22

October 18, 2021    

The Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) recently announced an increase in this year’s air conditioner rent surcharge for owners who pay for electricity. It set the monthly surcharge at $27.16, up $1.85 from $25.31 last year. This year’s increase reflects a 7.8 percent...

How to Apply the Rent Guidelines When ERAP Is Accepted

September 22, 2021    

If you’re accepting ERAP funds, you must abide by certain terms.

 

Updated Building Energy Efficiency Rating Label Available on Oct. 1

September 22, 2021    

Large building owners must post the label by Oct. 31 or face a $1,250 penalty.

 

Building Owner Heating Obligations as Heat Season Begins

September 22, 2021    

During “heat season” HPD responds to all heat and hot water complaints and, if adequate heat and hot water conditions aren’t corrected, HPD will impose penalties and may contract with private companies under the Emergency Repair Program to restore services to residents. In the...

Supreme Court Limits CEEFPA: Which Eviction Protections Remain?

August 25, 2021    

On Aug. 12, the country’s highest court sided with a group of New York owners who challenged the state’s COVID Emergency Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Act (CEEFPA). The CEEFPA was signed into law in December 2020, effectively freezing nearly all evictions in the state. In the...

Will Local Law 152 Force Your Illegal Laundry Room to Come Clean?

August 25, 2021    

Complying with the gas piping inspection requirements of Local Law 152 is putting owners of small buildings with illegal laundry rooms in a lather. Local Law 152 was passed as part of a larger package of regulations concerning gas line safety. Specifically, it imposes periodic inspections for...

How to Implement RGBO #53 Rent Increases

July 22, 2021    

On June 23, the Rent Guidelines Board voted to freeze existing rents for six months before increasing rates by 1.5 percent for the remaining half of the year for one-year leases. The RGB also voted to raise rents on two-year leases by 2.5 percent. The new rates take effect for leases commencing...

OTDA Updates ERA Program FAQs, Clarifies Roommate Eligibility

July 22, 2021    

On June 1, nearly two months after lawmakers first created the $2.4 billion rental relief fund, the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) launched the online application portal allowing tenants and landlords to apply for rental assistance. At the time, OTDA said applications...

HPD Proposes New Definition for ‘Lead-Based Paint’

July 22, 2021    

To implement Local Law 66 of 2019, HPD has proposed a rule amending the definitions of lead-based paint. Local Law 66 of 2019 outlined new lead reference or action levels and standards relating to lead-based paint hazards.