Overcharge Complaint Concerning Deregulated Apartment Properly Dismissed

Tenant complained to the DHCR of rent overcharge and improper deregulation of his apartment. The DRA ruled against tenant. Tenant presented no proof indicating any rent fraud by landlord. The base rent date was Jan. 28, 2012, and landlord submitted proof of individual apartment improvements (IAIs) costing over $68,000 done in 2014 after prior tenant moved out. The apartment was lawfully vacancy-deregulated based on 1/40th of the IAI costs, along with the vacancy increase added in 2014, which brought the legal rent over $2,500 per month.

Tenant appealed and lost. The DHCR found no proof to support tenant's claims of sham tenancies and inflated IAI costs. Landlord had submitted lease and ledger records, and filed contemporaneous apartment registrations. An early termination rider in the prior tenant's deregulated lease was for that tenant's benefit, not for landlord's. And landlord wasn't required to register a deregulated tenancy. 

Shammah: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. IS410087RK (3/9/21) [8-pg. doc.]