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What is Rent Control?
The rent control program generally applies to residential buildings constructed before February 1947 in
municipalities that have not declared an end to the postwar rental housing emergency.
A total of 51 municipalities have rent control, including New York City, Albany, Buffalo
and various cities, towns, and villages in Albany, Erie, Nassau, Rensselaer, Schenectady
and Westchester counties.
For an apartment to be under rent control, the tenant must have been living in that
apartment continuously since before July 1, 1971. When a rent controlled apartment
becomes vacant, it either becomes rent stabilized, or, if it is in a building with
fewer than six units, it is generally removed from regulation. An apartment in a
one- or two family house without commercial units must have a tenant in continuous
occupancy since March 31, 1953 in order to be subject to rent control. Once it is
vacated after that date, it is no longer subject to regulation. Previously controlled
apartments may have been decontrolled on various other grounds.
Rent control limits the rent an owner may charge for an apartment and restricts the right of
an owner to evict tenants. It also obligates the owner to provide essential services and
equipment. Outside New York City, the New York State Division of Housing and Community
Renewal (DHCR) determines maximum allowable rates of rent increases under rent control.
Owners may apply for these increases periodically.
In NYC, rent control operates under the Maximum Base Rent (MBR) system. A maximum base
rent is established for each apartment and is adjusted every two years to reflect changes in
operating costs. Owners who certify that they are providing essential services and have removed
violations may raise rents by up to 7.5% each year until the MBR limit is reached.
Tenants may challenge the increases on the grounds that the building has violations or the
owner's expenses do not warrant an increase. Rents may be increased in other ways: (1)
if the owner increases
services or substantially rehabilitates a building or installs a major capital improvements;
(2) hardship; (3) increased labor costs; (4) in NYC, increased fuel costs (passalongs).
Rents may be decreased in certain cases by DHCR. Such cases include: substantial,
uncorrected code violations and reductions in services including facilities, space or
equipment, or ancillary services.
What is Rent Stabilization?
In NYC, rent stabilized apartments are those apartments in buildings of six or more units built between February 1, 1947 and January 1, 1974. Tenants in buildings of six or more units built before February 1, 1947, who moved in after June 30, 1971 are also covered by rent stabilization. A third category of rent stabilized apartments covers buildings with three or more apartments constructed or extensively renovated since 1974 with special tax benefits. Generally, these buildings are stabilized only while the tax benefits continue.
Outside NYC, rent stabilization applies to non-rent controlled apartments in buildings of six or more units built before January 1, 1974 in the localities that adopted the Emergency Tenant Protection Act (ETPA) in Nassau, Rockland and Westchester counties. Some municipalities limit ETPA to buildings of a specific size, but never fewer than six units. Stabilization also applies to formerly rent controlled apartments located in ETPA localities where the unit was vacated on or after June 30, 1971.
The local Rent Guidelines Boards in NYC and in Nassau, Rockland and Westchester counties set maximum rates for rent increases once a year which are effective for leases beginning on or after October 1st of each year.
The Rent Regulation Reform Act of 1993 (RRRA) provides for the deregulation of apartments with legal rents of $2,000 or more at any time between July 7, 1993 and October 1, 1993 that were or become vacant on or after July 7, 1993. In NYC, Local Law No. 4 of 1994 further provided for deregulation for apartments with legal rents of $2,000 or more at any time which were or become vacant on or after April 1, 1994.
Both the RRRA and Local Law No. 4 in NYC further provided for deregulation of high rent apartments occupied by high income tenants. In NYC, Local Law No. 4 provides for deregulation of apartments whenever the legal rent for those apartments reach $2,000 or more and are occupied by tenants with an income in excess of $250,000 in each of the tow successive years prior to the owner's application for deregulation. Outside NYC, the RRRA provides for the deregulation of apartments with legal rents of $2,000 or more on October 1, 1993 which are occupied by tenants who either at that time or at a later date have an income in excess of $250,000 in each of the two years preceding the owner's application.
The RRRA of 1997 reduced the income threshold to $175,000 for NNYC and New York State effective January 1, 1998.
Like rent control, stabilization provides other protections to tenants besides limitations on rents. Tenants are entitled to receive required services and to have their leases renewed, and may not be evicted except on grounds allowed by law. Leases must be entered into and renewed for 1 to 2 year terms, at the tenant's choice.
If the tenant's rights are violated, DHCR may reduce rents and impose civil penalties on the owner. Rents may be reduced if services are not maintained. In cases of overcharges, DHCR may assess penalties of interest or, in the case of willful overcharges, treble damages, payable to the tenant.
The Omnibus Housing Act required owners to initially register with DHCR the rent and services for all rent stabilized apartments that were occupied on April 1, 1984 by June 30, 1984. Owners were required to serve a copy of the registration upon tenants, who had 90 days to challenge the information provided by the owner.
For apartments becoming subject to rent stabilization after 1984, owners must initially register all apartments within 90 days after they become subject to rent stabilization. In NYC, tenants may file a challenge to the initial stabilized rent of a formerly rent controlled apartment becoming subject to rent stabilization for the first time. This challenge is known as a "Fair Market Rent Appeal."
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Owners are also required to register annually or they may be denied rent increases. Owners must provide tenants with a copy of the annual registration.
What Essential Services are required for the Landlord in a Rent Regulated Property?
Under rent stabilization, an owner must maintain all services required by the
Rent Stabilization Law on rent stabilization's base dates of May 31, 1968 and/or May 29, 1974.
The base date for apartments under the Emergency Tenant protection Act (ETPA) outside of NYC is May 29,
1974, or the day immediately prior to the Ileal effective date, whichever is later. These services are
called required services and include, but are not limited to: repairs, maintenance, the furnishing of
light, heat, hot and cold water, elevator servicer janitorial service the removal of refuse, and
ancillary services such as garage and recreational facilities.
Under rent control, the owner must provide and maintain all services furnished or required to be
furnished on the base date of May 1, 1959 for rent unfilled append outside of NYG and March 1,
1943 for those within NYC. Modifications to required and essential services may have been ordered
hereafter with an appropriate adjustment in rent. These seize- are called eventual services and may
included but are not limited to: repairer maintenances the furnishing of light, heat hot and cold water,
elevator service, kitchen, bath and mounds : facilities and privileges, janitor service, and removal of refuse.
Required services or essential services for apartments may be building-wide, such as heat, hot water,
elevator service, and maintenance of public areas of the building. The service may also be something
furnished within an individual apartment. such as a refrigerator, stover air conditioning equipment, or painting.
When an owner provides equipment or servicest, such as a refrigerator or an air conditioner, the owner must
maintain it in good working order. Defective equipment must be repaired or replaced.
The owner does not have to replace defective equipment with brand new equipment. The defective equipment
may be replaced with reconditioned or used equipment, provided it is in good working order. The owner
is not entitled to any increase in rent based on the cost of reconditioned or used equipment.
For example, if the apartment includes one or more air conditioners, the owner is required to see
that they are in good working order. If the owner does not repair or replace a broken air conditioner,
the tenant may request a rent reduction from DHCR: which is empowered to reduce rents when a service
complaint is valid. Furthermore: unless the owner did not consent to the installation of an air
conditioner, the owner must, at his or her own expense, remove and reinstall the air conditioner
when any exterior work requires such removal and installation.
If an appliance or equipment is replaced with a new one, the owner may be entitled to a rent increase equal to 1/40th
of the cost of the new equipment including installation costs, but not including finance
charges. For occupied apartment, however, the tenant's written consent is required before the owner may
collect the increase.
For utilized apartments, the tenant's written consent should be retained by the owner but need not
be filed by the owner with DHCR.
For all apartments subject to rent controls the owner must file a notice with DHCR to obtain a
rent increase for new equipment. The tenant's consent is a part of that form and the rental
increase is ejective on the fit rent payment date following the filing of the form.
If an installation of new equipment is done while the apartment is vacant, the new tenant's
consent is not required for the owner to collect a 1/40th increase.
A tenant who experiences a decreased service in an individual apartment should first contact
the owner. If that does not resolve the problem, the tenant may file an ''Individual Tenant Statement
of Complaint of Decrease in Services.
For complaints involving a decrease in building-wide serves, still uncorrected after a tenant contacted the owner,
a tenant or tenant representative may file a agreement of Complaint of a Decrease in Building-Wide Services''
Do Regulated Tenant Have Any right When a New Owner Wants to occupy The Building? An owner may refuse to renew
a rent stabilized tenant's lease in NYC because the owner wants the apartment for personal use and occupant
as a primary evident for the owner or a member of the owner's immediate family. Under the Rent Stabilization
Law, an owner may begin an eviction when the current lease expire, but only after the tenant is given written
notice that the lease will not be renewed. This notice must be served at least 90 and not more than 150 day
before the current lease term expires.
According to the Rent Stabilization Law, only one of the Individual owners of a building can take possession
of one or more dwelling units for personal or immediate family use
and occupancy, even if the building has joint or multiple ownership.
If after an owner recovers possession of the apartments the owner does not use the apartments as the owner's or an
immediate family member primary residence for three years, the owner may man lose the right to any rent increase
for other apartments in that building for three years.
For rent stabilized apartment inside NYC and for rent controlled apartments statewide the owner must
apply to DHCR for an order granting a certificate of eviction by filing an owner's Applicatioin for Order
Granting Approval to Refuse Renewal of Lease and/or to Proceed for Eviction for Owner Occupancy (DHCR Form RA-54).
Additional rules apply to senior citizens and disabled persons concerneding evictions based on owner occupant:
1. An owner cannot evict a tenant from a rent stabilized apartment in NYC if the tenant or the spouse of the
tenant is a senior citizen, 62 years or older, or is a disabled person unless the owner provides an equivalent
or superior apartment at the same or lower rent in a nearby area.
2.An owner cannot evict a tenant from a rent stabilized apartment outside of NYC or a rent controlled
apparent statewide when a member of the household lawfully occupying the apartment is a senior citizen,
62 years or older; or, is a disabled person, or is any person who has been a tenant in the building for
20 years or more.
A complete list of all rent regulation rules can be found at www.dhcr.state.ny.us |
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