No Preferential Rent Agreement in Prior Renewal Leases

Rent-stabilized tenant complained that landlord's renewal lease offer was improper. The renewal lease contained a preferential rent agreement. Tenant said that none of his renewal leases during the prior four years had any preferential rent agreement. The DRA denied tenant's complaint, finding that tenant's complaint concerned rent overcharge. The DRA said that it couldn't determine the preferential rent question in response to a renewal lease complaint.
Tenant appealed and won. In a rent overcharge case, the question is whether landlord charged and collected rent in excess of the legal regulated rent. In this case, there was no actual rent overcharge. The issue concerned the renewal lease terms. None of tenant's renewal leases during the prior four years contained a preferential rent agreement. So the renewal lease that landlord sent tenant for the term starting Oct. 1, 2008, wasn't a preferential rent agreement. The rent amount stated was the legal regulated rent.

Farghaly: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. XG110011RT (9/1/09) [4-pg. doc.]