TenantNet Forum

Where tenants can seek help and help others



Lease says my apartment not rent stabilized- DHCR says it is

NYC Rent Regulation: Rent Control/Rent Stabilized, DHCR Practice/Procedures

Moderator: TenantNet

Lease says my apartment not rent stabilized- DHCR says it is

Postby SeaMonster » Thu Feb 01, 2018 3:40 pm

Is my lease even valid?

Top of the lease says its a standard lease for apartments not subject to rent stabilization law. I requested rental history of my apartment from DHCR and turns out my unit is in fact rent stabilized.

This is just one of many shady things my landlord has done.
SeaMonster
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Feb 01, 2018 3:31 pm

Re: Lease says my apartment not rent stabilized- DHCR says i

Postby TenantNet » Thu Feb 01, 2018 5:26 pm

Generally the rent histories from DHCR do not make a legal conclusion that a unit is rent stabilized. It will list the rents registered by the landlord, which of course can often be false. To really come to that conclusion you need to look at the rent histories along with all other available facts (duration of previous leases, when tenants moved in and out, other charges added to the rent, and why) and have it analyzed by a person experienced in such things. If it appears to have issues, then a complaint to DHCR might be appropriate.
The Tenant Network(tm) for Residential Tenants
Information from TenantNet is from experienced non-attorney tenant
activists and is not considered legal advice.

Subscribe to our Twitter Feed @TenantNet
TenantNet
 
Posts: 10309
Joined: Mon Jan 21, 2002 2:01 am
Location: New York City

Re: Lease says my apartment not rent stabilized- DHCR says i

Postby SeaMonster » Thu Feb 01, 2018 5:41 pm

TenantNet wrote:Generally the rent histories from DHCR do not make a legal conclusion that a unit is rent stabilized. It will list the rents registered by the landlord, which of course can often be false. To really come to that conclusion you need to look at the rent histories along with all other available facts (duration of previous leases, when tenants moved in and out, other charges added to the rent, and why) and have it analyzed by a person experienced in such things. If it appears to have issues, then a complaint to DHCR might be appropriate.


I got the rental history from DHCR which includes my name on it and the apartment marked being reported as rent stabilized with me (and every single previous tenant). I was not provided a rider. My building as a whole is also listed as being a building with stabilized units. It definitely has not been deregulated.

If it is in fact rent stabilized (im quite certain it is), is my lease even valid considering it says it is not? Thats all I'd like to know- If my apartment is in fact rent stabilized under NYC law does that make my lease invalid since it states the apartment is not?
SeaMonster
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Feb 01, 2018 3:31 pm

Re: Lease says my apartment not rent stabilized- DHCR says i

Postby SeaMonster » Thu Feb 01, 2018 5:51 pm

Id also like to add this is a place rented out by someone who jacked the price $300 last minute from what it was advertised as. I was frankly in a desperate position which they knew so I ate the cost. I also paid the broker two months rent which I didnt realize at the time was addressed to the broker not the rental agency. I also was ordered to pay two weeks "rent" on top of all of that because they insisted we pay as if we were living there from lease signing day when the lease started two weeks later- which is when we moved in.

Has not provided heat as the lease states is included in rent. I've contacted landlord who claimed the lease says tenant pays for rent- it absolutely does not. Made a 311 complaint, landlord sent them a fake "lease" saying I agreed to pay for it.

My intercom/speaker/doorbell has never worked. Knew this moving in but landlord said he would be fixing it shortly (its been 10 months).

I was also promised a unit with a full updated bathroom. Instead they stuck me with one that resembles something you expect to see in a jail cell.

"LL" let my co-tenant pay him $850 to "be taken off the lease"- without my consent. Of course if they changed the lease without my consent theres a serious issue.
SeaMonster
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Feb 01, 2018 3:31 pm

Re: Lease says my apartment not rent stabilized- DHCR says i

Postby TenantNet » Thu Feb 01, 2018 6:18 pm

Again, the rent history might say something that looks like it's RS, but that's not a legal determination. It probably is ... as many LL's try to skirt the law, but the rent history is not the final determinant on RS status. There are many loopholes that LL's can raise. Just because the building might have other RS units, that does not determine your unit's status. And I don't even know the last time that DHCR enforced the rider rule.

The original lease might be "valid" to some extent, but that's a question that doesn't make much sense. The question is the status and legal rent. OTOH, if you want to nullify the lease and move out without further obligations, that might be one upshot of being "invalid."

The broker's fee is a different issue. Does the broker have any relationship with the landlord? If so, that can raise a lot of problems.

LLs must supply heat from a central heating source (not electric space heaters) unless they've obtained a waiver. See the NYC Housing Maintenance Code. (link above).

Seems like you have a mess to contend with. Understand that all these issue are separate - don't lump them into one big basket. You probably should find a housing group that will look at all this with original documentation.
The Tenant Network(tm) for Residential Tenants
Information from TenantNet is from experienced non-attorney tenant
activists and is not considered legal advice.

Subscribe to our Twitter Feed @TenantNet
TenantNet
 
Posts: 10309
Joined: Mon Jan 21, 2002 2:01 am
Location: New York City


Return to NYC Rent Regulated Apartments

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 37 guests