Landlord
Under state law, landlords are prohibited from
allowing any condition that may endanger a
tenant’s life, health or safety.
The dwelling must be clean before the tenant
moves in.
Public halls and stairways must be lighted
adequately.
During the winter season, heat must be kept on
at all times, except during repairs, alterations and
temporary emergencies.
Radiators, plumbing, wiring, hot water heaters and
furnaces must be maintained.
Apartment and surrounding areas must be kept
free from insects, rodents and trash.
Tenant
Pay the rent on time.
Apartment and yard must be kept clean.
The landlord must be kept informed of any
problems with facilities.
Any damages to the premises, besides normal wear
and tear, must be repaired.
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Unless otherwise stated in the lease
Senior citizens and tenants
with disabilities
If you are a senior, aged 62 or over, you may be eligible
for the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE)
program. Individuals with disabilities who receive certain
forms of state or federal disability-related financial
assistance may be eligible for the Disability Rent Increase
Exemption (DRIE) program. Remember, there are very
specific eligibility requirements for these programs.
Senior citizens and tenants with disabilities are also
protected from being threatened with eviction due to
conversion to cooperative or condominium ownership.
Heat
In a building with three or more units, between Oct.
1 and May 31, landlords are required by state law to
provide heating equipment that can maintain room
temperatures of 68° F between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. when
the temperature outside is below 55° F.
County laws may go beyond what’s required by state law.
Housing code violations
Any problems endangering your health and safety should
be reported to the landlord immediately. If the landlord is
not available or won’t correct the problem, tenants should
call their local health or building department.
Subleases
If you live in a building with three or fewer apartments, you
do not have the right to sublet. You may ask the landlord
for permission to sublease your apartment, but the landlord
does not have to agree.
In buildings with four or more apartments, you are allowed
to sublease your apartment with the advance written
consent of the landlord. As the original tenant of a
subleased apartment, you remain liable for damages and/
or defaults in rent. The steps to sublease are:
1. Inform your landlord of your intent to sublease by
certified or registered mail, including information
required by law about the sublessee.
2. Your landlord has 10 days to request more information.
3. Within 30 days after this request and additional
information is mailed, or if more information was not
requested within 30 days of the initial notification, your
landlord must approve or deny the request.
4. If your landlord fails to notify you, this can be
considered an approval.
5. Upon approval, you may sublease the apartment.
Security deposits
A security deposit is a sum of money held by the landlord
to cover violations of the lease — e.g., damages — caused
by a tenant or nonpayment of rent. The law limits a
security deposit to an amount equal to one month’s rent
and requires any deposit to be refundable. Tenants also
have the right to ask for a walk-through inspection with
the landlord before occupancy and again at the end of the
tenancy. As a tenant, you should request a receipt for your
security deposit. In buildings with six or more housing
units, the landlord must:
deposit your money in an interest-bearing account;
give you the name and address of the bank in writing;
and
hold the interest in trust or pay it to you annually. The
landlord may retain 1% of the interest generated on the
security deposit for administrative expenses.
In buildings with fewer than six housing units, the landlord
is not required to deposit the money in an interest-bearing
account. If the landlord decides to deposit the money in a
bank, you’re entitled to proper notification and interest, if
any, less 1% for administrative expenses.
When you move, you should receive a refund of the
security deposit. You’re responsible for any damages
beyond normal wear and tear, and your landlord may
withhold all or part of the security deposit to cover
damage or unpaid rent. Landlords are required to
provide an itemized account of why any security deposit
was retained within 14 days of the tenant vacating the
premises. The landlord can be found liable for punitive
damages up to twice the amount of the deposit if they
willfully failed to follow the new provisions relating to
security deposits.
Tenants’ Rights & Protections in New York State
Evictions
Eviction is the legal removal of a person from someone
else’s property. The steps in an eviction are:
1. Tenant defaults in rent payments and/or breaks the
terms of the lease or the lease expires. Tenants have 14
days to pay their rent before an action can be brought.
2. Landlord files a complaint and serves a petition to the
tenant. Tenants must be given at least 10 days’ notice
for a court hearing.
3. Tenant appears in court to contest the eviction and to
raise any counterclaims against the landlord. If there
is a dispute, either party may request an adjournment
of at least 14 days. In certain circumstances, the law
also allows judges to stay an eviction proceeding if it
would cause undue hardship in a tenant’s life. Tenants
who don’t contest the eviction in court lose the case by
default.
4. If the landlord wins, the court issues a warrant, ordering
the tenant’s eviction, to be served by the marshal or
sheriff on a business day between the hours of sunrise
and sunset. The court may also issue a monetary
judgment against the tenant. If the landlord can’t
prove his or her case, the action is dismissed. If the
tenant wins a counterclaim, the court issues a judgment
against the landlord.
5. If the case involves the nonpayment of rent, the tenant
can usually end the action by paying rent before the
warrant is issued.
6. The warrant is served, giving the tenant 14 days to
collect their belongings and find a new home.
7. After 14 days, the marshal or sheriff removes the
tenant’s belongings from the premises and locks the
tenant out.
Retaliatory eviction protections
Every lease is a guarantee by the landlord that the
premises are fit for human habitation and tenants will not
be in danger – called a warranty of habitability. Breach
of this guarantee can be grounds for a tenant to sue the
landlord or, if the landlord has started a court action, have
the landlord’s action dismissed.
However, tenants are often reluctant to report violations
of housing codes or seek enforcement of their legal
rights for fear they may be evicted in retaliation. By law,
a residential tenant — except tenants of owner-occupied
dwellings with less than four units — can claim retaliation
as a defense to an eviction action if the tenant has
filed a good faith complaint of an unsafe, unhealthy or
uninhabitable dwelling or the tenant has taken action
in good faith to secure his or her rights as a tenant.
Landlords have the burden of proving the eviction is not
in retaliation for up to a year after the tenant’s good faith
complaint or action, and tenants may receive a one-year
lease renewal if they prevail. The laws also protect tenants
against landlord retaliation for participating in tenant
organizations.
Responsibilities*