Landlord Can't Get Hardship Rent Increase

Landlord, the holder of unsold co-op shares for 100 rent-controlled apartments, applied to the DHCR for hardship rent increases. The Tenant Association opposed the application, claiming that it would cause massive rent increases and force tenants to move. The DHCR ruled against landlord, finding that it didn't qualify for the hardship increases. Landlord appealed and lost. In an unrelated case, New York's highest court previously had ruled that, in hardship cases, the DHCR should consider as income the maintenance payments that shareholders paid the co-op corporation instead of the actual rent paid by individual rent-controlled tenants. Landlord argued that, since it filed its application before the DHCR's new method of calculation went into effect, it shouldn't be applied to this case. The court rejected landlord's argument since landlord also contributed to the delay in processing its application.

London Terrace Associates LP v. DHCR: Index No. 103341/11, NYLJ No. 1202542565072 (Sup. Ct. NY; 1/18/12; Hagler, J)