Loft Wasn't Deregulated

Landlord sued to evict tenant, claiming that tenant's loft unit was deregulated and no longer subject to Article 7-C of the Loft Law. The trial court ruled for landlord. Tenant appealed and won. Landlord claimed that the loft was deregulated based on prior landlord's "constructive purchase" in 1987 of fixtures belonging to a prior tenant. But landlord didn't prove that prior tenant abandoned the fixtures and the loft with rent unpaid in an amount that was greater than the fair market value of the fixtures, even if prior tenant did abandon the loft in 1987. Landlord at no time identified or described the fixtures and didn't offer any proper proof at trial as to their value. The trial court also erred by relying on landlord's claimed 1990 purchase of improvements made by prior tenant's roommate. Landlord didn't include this claim in its termination notice to tenant and only raised it in rebuttal to tenant's defense at trial.

73 Tribeca LLC v. Greenbaum: 2014 NY Slip Op 24052, 2014 WL 887250 (App. T. 1 Dept.; 3/5/14; Schoenfeld, PJ, Hunter Jr., Torres, JJ)