Hearing Needed to Determine if Basement Apartment Is Lawful

Landlord sued to evict tenant from a basement apartment based on nonpayment of rent. Tenant claimed that the apartment was illegal and asked the court to dismiss the case. After reviewing documents presented by both sides, the court ruled that a hearing was needed to determine the facts. Tenant claimed that the US Postal Service and NY State Dept. of Motor Vehicles each refused to recognize the apartment as a lawful residential address. Landlord offered two documents to the court: a Letter of No Objection from DOB (LNO) and an inspection report from the NYC Dept. of Homeless Services, indicating in 2017 that the unit was fit for occupation. However, the LNO makes no reference to tenant's apartment, and NYC's Dept. of Investigation also later found that housing specialists employed by the Dept. of Homeless Services weren't properly trained to detect residential health and safety hazards. So the record before the court didn't yet conclusively establish the lawful occupancy of the apartment. 

274 v. 175 Realty LLC v. Rodriguez: Index No. CV-006632-22, 2023 NY Slip Op 50396(U)(Civ. Ct. Bronx; 5/1/23; Zellan, J)