DHCR Dismisses 2019 High-Rent/High-Income Deregulation Applications

In February 2019, landlord filed three applications for high-rent/high-income deregulation of rent-stabilized apartments in one building. The DRA ruled against landlord in August 2019 based on the enactment of the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (HSTPA), which repealed high-rent/high-income deregulation as of June 14, 2019.

Landlord appealed all three decisions and lost. Landlord argued that HSTPA didn't apply to these cases. But, as of June 14, 2019, no deregulation order had been issued for any of the three apartments, and the apartments remained on that date under the jurisdiction of the Rent Stabilization Law. And no deregulation order could be issued on or after June 14, 2019, because high-rent/high-income deregulation had been abolished. In addition, for one of the units, the rent-stabilized lease in effect when landlord's application was filed didn't expire until after June 14, 2019. Prior to HSTPA, RSL Section 26-504.3 conditioned such deregulation on the expiration of an existing lease. When the apartment's lease expired, no deregulation was available. And two courts had upheld denial of deregulation orders under such conditions.

65 West 55th Capital, LLC: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket Nos. HU410033RO, HU410046RO, HU410053RO (3/3/21) [5-pg. doc.]