New Leak Stain Found

Landlord filed a rent restoration application based on restoration of services previously found to have been reduced. The DRA ruled for landlord based on findings that cracked plaster on sixth-floor ceiling and walls, and water stains on garage ceiling had been repaired. Landlord and tenants both appealed. Landlord claimed that the effective date of the rent restoration should be sooner, based on the DRA's delay in processing the rent restoration application. Tenants claimed that there was still water intrusion, documented by other individual DHCR complaints and at least one decision. The DHCR ruled for landlord and against tenants. Landlord's engineer and DHCR's inspector found no water leak stains on the sixth-floor ceilings and walls or on the garage ceiling. A DHCR inspection report noted that there was a leak stain under the window of the bulkhead of one part of the building, but this condition was different from those on which the rent reduction was based. The DRA sent tenants a notice of landlord's rent restoration application on July 6, 2004. So the effective date of the rent restoration should be Aug. 1, 2004, not Feb. 1, 2005. The effective date was changed to the earlier date.

Samson Mgmt. LLC/Various Tenants: DHCR Adm. Rev. Dckt. Nos. TD710028RO & TC710048RT (7/14/05) [3-pg. doc.]