CTRC Fact Sheets -- reproduced with permission.
================================================================
The Community Training Resource Center (CTRC) is a city-wide not-
for-profit organization that champions the rights of modest and
low-income tenants and promotes the preservation, improvement,
and expansion of affordable housing. CTRC provides training and
technical assistance for neighborhood housing groups, community
based organizations, legislative staffs and social service
providers.
CTRC produces fact sheets on tenants' rights, develops and
publishes research reports, and provides a written guide to New
York City government processes. CTRC advocates on budget policies
that affect housing and related services in low-income
neighborhoods. CTRC has led the campaign for the improvement and
expansion of the city's Housing Maintenance Code inspection and
enforcement services.
================================================================
CTRC Fact Sheet #103 (Current Rent Guidelines)
(see RGB History for previous Guidelines)
NEW YORK CITY RENT GUIDELINES ORDER NO. 28
October 1, 1996 through September 30, 1997
---------------------------------------------------------------
Type of Lease 1-year lease 2-year lease rent $400 or less
Renewal lease 5.0% 7.0% 5% or 7% plus $20
Vacancy Lease 5%+9%=14% 7%+9%=16% 14% or 16% plus $20
---------------------------------------------------------------
The above guidelines are the maximum rent increases that landlords in
New York City can legally charge for rent stabilized apartments that
have leases commencing or renewing in the twelve-month period
beginning October 1, 1996. For a one year renewal lease a 5.0%
increase is allowed; for a two year renewal an increase of 7.0% is
allowed. If the lease is for a new tenancy then a vacancy allowance of
9.0% may be added as well. Finally, Order No. 28 has determined that
for all apartments renting at $400 or less on September 30 1996, in
addition to whatever renewal or vacancy increases are applicable, a
surcharge of $20.00 per month will be imposed.
An example of how the guidelines are applied is as follows: a new
tenant signing a two-year lease to an apartment which had a prior
legal rent of $525.00 would now pay a 16.0% increase over the old rent
(9.0% vacancy allowance plus 7.0% for the new two-year term), or
$609.00.
Increases in rent based on either the one- or two-year renewal
guidelines or the vacancy allowance can be imposed only once during
the period covered by the lease term. This means that no guideline
increase can be applied if the lease term has not expired, even the
lease term of a prior tenant. If the previous tenant vacated before
the expiration of the lease term, the landlord would not be eligible
to collect any guideline increase until that prior term had expired.
In any case, tenants negotiating a lease for a desirable vacant
apartment should not openly question the legality of the rent; a
tenant raising such questions before signing a lease will probably not
get the apartment. Tenants who suspect an overcharge should wait until
they have signed a lease and moved in before challenging the rent (see
rent overcharges below).
Vacancy Allowance
The 9.0 percent vacancy allowance may be collected by a landlord from
a new tenant only if no vacancy allowance was previously collected in
a lease commencing under Order No. 28.
Electrical Inclusion
The same guidelines apply for tenants whose landlords pay for the
electricity consumed within the apartment under master-metering.
Heat Exclusion
Tenants who pay their own heating bills pay the same rent increases.
The Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) this year failed again to continue the
practice of some previous years when lower guidelines were set for
such tenants.
Fuel Surcharges
By law no fuel surcharges may be enacted by the Rent Guidelines Board.
Dollar amount surcharges for fuel levied in the early 80's may not be
added to the base rent for the purpose of calculating rent increases
of any kind. Tenants still paying such a surcharge are being
overcharged.
Rent Overcharges
Because the guidelines, now as well as in the past, are complicated,
and because landlords rarely disclose how they calculated the rent,
most tenants cannot accurately determine if they are paying a legal
rent, especially if they have just moved into their apartment. Tenants
are advised to find out what, in fact, is the legal rent by getting a
computerized print-out of the rent history of their apartment from the
New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR). Upon
any evidence of suspicious rent increases they can then file an
overcharge complaint on Form RA-89 with that agency. The tenant may
also withhold rent and wait to be taken to Housing Court by the
landlord where the Judge will determine a legal rent.
Fair Market Rent Appeal
Another type of overcharge (somewhat different than a direct violation
of the guidelines indicated above), often occurs at the time that a
previously rent controlled apartment becomes vacant and is re-rented
as a rent stabilized unit for the first time. The first stabilized
rent charged by the landlord for such a unit may be what the market
will bear, but the tenant has the corresponding right to challenge
that "market" rent as being unfairly high. The Rent Guidelines Board
sets what they call the "Special Fair Market Rent Guideline" that may
be used by the DHCR to adjust unfair market rents for tenants who file
a Fair Market Rent Appeal (FMRA).
Under Order No. 28, the guideline is 40.0% above the Maximum Base Rent
as it existed or would have existed, or 50.0% above the Maximum
Collectible Rent (whichever is higher) paid by the prior rent-
controlled tenant Tenants who file an FMRA often get substantial rent
rollbacks. No new tenant of an apartment that has just entered the
stabilization system should fail to challenge the so-called Initial
Legal Regulated Rent (market rent). New tenants have 90 days to do so,
after receiving the DHCR Form RR-1 by certified mail from their
landlord. If the form is not received or is not sent by certified
mail, the tenant or even subsequent tenants may challenge at any time.
Use Form RA-89 and indicate clearly that the complaint is both a
complaint of "overcharge" and a "fair market rent appeal."
Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption
Rent controlled or rent stabilized seniors 62 years or older, whose
annual disposable family income is $20,000 or less (after taxes and
other deductibles) and who pay, or face a rent increase that would
cause them to pay one-third or more of that income in rent may be
eligible for the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE)
Program. The SCRIE Unit is a part of the NYC Department for the Aging
and is located at 2 Lafayette Street, New York, NY 10007. If a
tenant's current rent level is already above one-third of income, it
cannot be rolled back, but future rent increases would be waived.
Obtain Form C-1-Rev. 7/90 or get information by calling (212) 442-
1000.
Loft Units
Loft unit increases above the base rent are 4.0% and 6.0%. However, no
vacancy allowance is permitted. See the text of Order No. 28 for
details or call the RGB at (212) 349-2262.
Hotels and SROs (Order # 26)
The basic increase for Class A apartment hotels and for SRO's (MDL
Sec. 248) is 0 percent (no increase). For other hotels (lodging
houses, rooming houses, and Class B hotels) it is also 0 percent (no
increase). No vacancy allowance, for accommodations in this section,
is permitted under this order.
Luxury Decontrol
The Reform Act of 1993 and subsequent City Council act on have
modified the Rent Stabilization Laws to allow for the decontrol of a
rent stabilized apartment that has legally reached a registered rent
of S2000 per month or more, upon vacancy. Additionally, a stabilized
apartment whose rent has reached $2000 per month and the tenant's
household income has averaged $250.000 or more for two consecutive
years, may upon landlord's application, become decontrolled. The
tenant after decontrol, would then be subject to any rent increase the
landlord might demand or could be evicted without cause at any time.
Many landlords have abused or ignored the restrictions of the luxury
decontrol provisions in the law. Tenants who rent apartments that were
formerly rent stabilized should consult with a qualified tenant
attorney or tenant organization to help them determine whether the
decontrol of their apartment was lawfully attained.
###
================================================================
These article are Copyright 1995 and 1996 by Community Training
Resource Center (CTRC) and reproduced by TenantNet. They may be freely
redistributed in their entirety provided they are reproduced exactly
as in the originals, including this copyright notice, the opening and
closing informational banners and any references to either CTRC
or TenantNet must be included.
These article are provided as is without any express or implied
warranty. While any information in these article is believed to be
correct at the time of writing, these articles are for educational
purposes only and do not purport to provide legal advice. If
you require legal advice, you should consult with a legal
practitioner licensed to practice in your jurisdiction.
Community Training Resource Center (212)964-7200
47 Ann Street
New York, NY 10038
================================================================
TenantNet - the online resource for residential tenants
TenantNet is not an apartment referral service or brokerage,
is not associated with any government agency, political party
or ideology. The information is believed to be accurate and is
for informational purposes only. TenantNet cannot act as
attorneys and makes no representations, expressed or implied,
that the information can or will be used or interpreted in any
particular way by any governmental agency or court.
================================================================