Apartment in Building Under HPD Regulatory Agreement Was Subject to Rent Stabilization

Tenant filed a lease violation complaint with the DHCR, claiming that landlord refused to offer him a rent-stabilized renewal lease. Tenant pointed out that he had received rent-stabilized leases from landlord in the past and that his apartment was registered as rent stabilized in 2020. Landlord claimed that tenant's apartment was a non-stabilized affordable housing unit where the rent was based on an 80 percent AMI Tier II Income level under a Regulatory Agreement. Landlord argued that under Article XI of the Private Housing Finance Law and Real Property Tax Law Section 420-c, the building was operated on a nonprofit basis for affordable and charitable purposes and was statutorily exempt from rent stabilization. The DRA ruled for tenant. Under Section 3.11 of the Regulatory Agreement entered on Dec. 31, 2015, with HPD, any apartment subject to rent stabilization as of Dec. 31, 2015, would continue to be rent stabilized.

Landlord appealed and lost. Landlord claimed that the apartment was legally deregulated in 2009 based on high-rent vacancy and was registered as PE with the DHCR. The DHCR found that landlord offered no proof that the apartment was legally deregulated in 2009. So the terms of the Regulatory Agreement conferred rent-stabilized status on the apartment.

Riverton Square LLC: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. MP410005RO (8/13/24)[2-pg. document]