Landlord Fraudulently Deregulated Apartment

Tenants complained of rent overcharge. They claimed that landlord had fraudulently deregulated their apartment. The DRA ruled for tenants and, using its default procedure, reduced tenants’ rent to $1,100, the lowest stabilized rent for the same size apartment in the building. The DRA ordered landlord to refund $132,175. Landlord appealed and lost. The DRA properly investigated beyond the four-year time limit. Rent registrations were filed late or amended, individual apartment improvements (IAIs) were backed up only by an affidavit, and the claimed consent by prior tenant to an IAI rent increase in 2004 based on $35,000 of claimed improvements didn’t match the rent registrations. It wasn’t credible that prior rent-stabilized tenant, who paid $430 per month in rent would have agreed to an IAI rent increase to raise the legal rent to $1,300. Photographs of the apartment also showed that claimed improvements including new kitchen floors, bathtub, closet doors, and flooring were not made. The DRA properly determined there was fraud in this case.

Bergen Realty & Mgmt. LLC: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. CW210001RO (10/28/15) [8-pg. doc.]