Third Avenue Residential Apartments at 160 East 84th Street. Image credit: CityLaw.

State used sampling method to set new base rent for studio improperly deregulated under luxury decontrol. The owner of a rental building at 160 East 84^th Street, Manhattan, took advantage of the luxury decontrol provisions of the Rent Stabilization Law to deregulate a studio apartment. Subsequently, the New York Court of Appeals ruled that buildings like 160 East 84^th Street were ineligible to take advantage of luxury decontrol because the building was also receiving tax incentive benefits under New York City’s j-51 program. (more…)

27 West 96th Street in Manhattan. Image Credit: Google Maps.

Landlord not responsible for more than four years of overcharged rent. On August 16, 2018, the Appellate Division for the First Department held that the landlord for 27 West 96^th Street in Manhattan did not engage in a fraudulent scheme to evade the Rent Stabilization Law and therefore the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) had miscalculated the amount of overcharged rent that was due back to tenants. (more…)