Landlord v. Tenant: December 2018

EVICTION 

Tenant’s Licensee Can’t Sue Landlord for Illegal Lockout  

Apartment occupant sued landlord, claiming that she had been illegally locked out of an apartment. The court ruled against occupant, who appealed and lost. Occupant was a Section 8 tenant of another apartment in a different building and presented no proof showing that she had a possessory interest in the apartment she was locked out of. She was merely a licensee of that apartment’s tenant, didn’t have “possession” of the apartment, and therefore can’t maintain an unlawful entry and detainer proceeding against landlord.

• Padilla v. Rodriguez: 61 Misc.3d 133(A), 2018 NY Slip Op 51471(U) (App. T. 1 Dept.; 10/19/18)

RENEWAL LEASES

No Notice to Cure Needed Before Terminating Tenancy

Landlord sued to evict rent-stabilized tenant for failing to provide access to make repairs and for failing to renew her rent-stabilized lease. Tenant claimed that landlord’s termination notice was defective. Although landlord first sent a notice to cure seeking access, landlord didn’t send a notice to cure the lease nonrenewal before sending the termination notice. The court ruled for tenant and dismissed the case. Landlord appealed, and the case was reopened. There is no requirement in the Rent Stabilization Code (RSC) that landlord send tenant a notice to cure a failure to renew a rent-stabilized renewal lease. RSC Section 2524.2 requires only that landlord send a 15-day termination notice to tenant before seeking eviction based on failure to renew a lease.

• Cunningham Associates, LP v. Peterson: Index No. 2017-696, 2018 NY Slip Op 28341 (App. T. 2 Dept.; 10/26/18)

RENT INCREASE ORDERED

Landlord Gets 10 Percent Rent Hike for Each of Tenant’s Roommates

Landlord applied for a rent increase to rent-controlled tenant’s maximum collectible rent (MCR) based on an increase in the number of adult occupants in tenant’s apartment and claimed they weren’t members of tenant’s immediate family. The DRA ruled for landlord and increased tenant’s MCR by 10 percent. The DRA noted that in 2009 it had previously increased tenant’s rent by 10 percent based on the addition of one occupant. Now there were two.

Tenant appealed and lost. NYC Rent & Eviction Regulations Section 2202.6 permits this rent increase as a surcharge, separate from and not to be included in the DHCR’s maximum base rent (MBR) and MCR increase calculations. The surcharges remained in effect as long as the additional occupants lived in the apartment with tenant.

• Getoff: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. GQ420069RT (8/21/18)