Occupant Doesn't Prove Succession Rights to Grandmother's Rent-Controlled Apartment

Apartment occupant complained to the DHCR that landlord refused to give him a renewal lease. He claimed succession rights to a rent-controlled apartment he said he'd lived in with his grandmother since 2018. The DRA ruled against occupant, finding that he didn't respond to the DRA's requests for additional information to show that he'd lived in the unit for at least two years before the tenant either died or moved out. The DRA also had requested proof of the occupant's relationship with the tenant, including her birth certificate and his mother's and father's birth certificates.

The occupant appealed and lost. Although he submitted some additional information with his PAR, the DHCR wouldn't consider new proof on appeal, especially where there was no good cause shown for why occupant didn't submit any requested documentation to the DRA.

Lamothe: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. LX620001RT (3/1/24)[5-pg. document]