Category Archives: Landlord / Tenant Law

New Law Requires Sprinkler System Clauses in NY Leases

New York Real Property Law Section 231-a requires that every residential lease issued on or after December 4, 2014 provide conspicuous notice in bold face type as to the existence or non-existence of a maintained and operative sprinkler system in the leased premises. If there is a maintained and operative sprinkler system in the leased […]

Is It Housing Discrimination For My New York Landlord To Refuse To Let Me Move Into One Of His Larger Apartments To Accommodate My Disabilities?

Yes, it may be discriminatory for your New York landlord to refuse to allow you to move into a larger apartment to accommodate your disability. In a recent case, a disabled tenant made several requests to the Housing Authority of Baltimore City (HABC) over a four-year period to be transferred to a four-bedroom unit that […]

Can My Landlord Cancel My Lease Because I Told Him I’m Having Financial Problems?

That will depend on how definite and unequivocal your expression of financial difficulties was. In a recent New York case, before the term of the 15 year commercial lease was to begin, the New York tenant advised the landlordthat it was experiencing financial difficulties. By an email message, the tenant offered the landlord certain “options” […]

Is It Housing Discrimination For A New York Landlord To Limit Tenants To Two Per Bedroom?

A New York landlord can only restrict two tenants per bedroomin some situations.In a recent case, a husband and wife filed a complaint with HUD that the management company refused to renew their lease after concluding that the family of five was too large for the 1,464 square foot, two-bedroom apartment that they had occupied […]

How Do I Evict A Tenant For Failing To Pay Rent In New York?

If you are a landlord and you have a tenant who isn’t paying the rent, there are some steps you must take to evict them. First, you must make a rent demand. If the tenant fails to pay the rent after receiving the demand, the landlord can start a nonpayment case in court. To start […]

My Landlord Keeps Coming Into My Apartment Unannounced. Is This Legal in New York?

In New York, tenants have the right to privacy within their apartments or rental homes. There are certain circumstances under which a landlord can enter an apartment. However, in general, landlords are expected to leave their tenants alone in their rental homes. Under New York law, there are three reasons that a landlord can enter […]

My Landlord Refuses To Give Me My Security Deposit Back. What Can I Do Under New York Law?

If you rented a house or apartment from a New York landlord, the landlord most likely required you to give a security deposit before you were allowed to move in. Usually, the security deposit is equal to a month’s rent. If a person chooses to renew his or her lease, and the rent is increased, […]

Tenant's Rights After Hurricane Sandy

Many New York tenants returned home after Hurricane Sandy to find catastrophic damage and loss of power, heat, hot water and elevator service. New York residential   (including cooperative) tenants are protected by the warranty of habitability under New York Real Property Law §235-b. It is implied in every New York residential lease that the premises […]

NY Landlord Pays $58k For Prohibiting Companion Dog

The owner of a Long Island, New York senior housing development has agreed to pay a settlement of $58,750 to the surviving husband of a woman who died soon after the landlord refused to make an exception to its no-pets policy to allow her to keep her dog, which her doctors said she needed for […]

Year-Long NY Mobile Home Rent Strike Settled

After withholding rents for one year, senior mobile home tenants in Newstead, New York have reached a settlement with their landlord. Fifty tenants of the Quarry Hill Mobile Home Park began withholding their rents and water charges through their attorney, Robert Friedman of Friedman & Ranzenhofer, PC in December, 2011. They alleged unsafe and unsanitary […]