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Recently, the Division of Housing and Community Renewal’s (DHCR’s) Office of Rent Administration (ORA) released its 2013 Annual Review. The publication gives an overview of ORA’s various bureaus that are charged with effectively administering New York State’s rent laws and maintaining the stock of affordable rent-stabilized and rent-controlled housing.
Smart Apartments, a short-term housing operator that put up visitors in illegally converted apartment buildings, will pay a $1 million penalty to the city and be permanently banned from running its operation. “Unregulated illegal hotels are unsafe and pose a danger to the community and those who unwittingly use them,” Mayor Bloomberg said in a statement.
As part of its continuing efforts to make New York City better prepared for future hurricanes, the City Council recently passed a package of legislation that’s intended to strengthen building standards and enhance building and infrastructure resiliency against the effects of future storms such as Superstorm Sandy. Mayor Bloomberg signed the bills into law on Oct. 2, 2013.
A 79-year-old rent-stabilized tenant is at the center of a bankruptcy case that may pose a risk to her and the millions of other New Yorkers who live in rent-stabilized apartments.
The tenant, unable to keep up with her bills after her husband’s death, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy two years ago. She has no assets and no income other than Social Security. Typically under such circumstances, following a bankruptcy filing, she wouldn’t have to pay the $...
The Department of Buildings announced that the deadline to file 2012 Category 1 Elevator Inspection and Affirmation of Correction Reports has been extended to Dec. 31, 2013. This extension applies to reports for unsatisfactory Category 1 inspections for the calendar year 2012 inspection cycle.
Even after owners hired a private investigator to document a tenant’s illegal short-term rental activities, the Nolita tenant has managed to avoid getting evicted, due to a technicality.
In May, a judge ruled that online short-term apartment rental practices violate city codes and state law. Still, industry leaders estimate 3,000 New Yorkers rent out their apartments to visitors, making an expected $1 billion in profits this year.
New York’s Building Resiliency Task Force, the expert panel that convened after Hurricane Sandy to outline steps to fortify New York’s buildings and strengthen building standards, recently released a report that includes 33 recommendations. They address resiliency in a wide range of buildings and offer options to help existing buildings become more resilient and strengthen the Building Code and Zoning Resolution to ensure future construction meets the highes...
New York City’s plan to let private developers build on public housing land is drawing increasing resistance from politicians, residents, and housing advocates, who say the idea should be abandoned. In the beginning of the year, the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) commenced a multi-year effort to engage residents, elected officials, and other community leaders in the development process of its land lease initiative.
If you own a building with rent-controlled units, remember to submit the forms that need to be filed for the upcoming 2014-2015 maximum base rent (MBR) cycle. The forms include the Violation Certification and the Operation and Maintenance and Essential Service Certification.
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