Rent-Stabilized Tenants Overcharged Roommate

The roommate of two rent-stabilized tenants complained of rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for the roommate and ordered tenants to refund $21,762 to the roommate. One of the tenants appealed and lost. Tenant claimed that she had signed an agreement with landlord to move out of the apartment rather than fight over whether she was a primary resident. Therefore, she claimed, any overcharge was landlord's responsibility. Tenant also claimed that the roommate didn't pay any agreed-upon apartment expenses after June 2014, yet continued to live in the apartment for another two years. But the DHCR found that a private agreement didn't change tenant's responsibility for overcharges to the roommate. And tenant's agreement with landlord wasn't "so-ordered" by a court and the roommate wasn't a party to that agreement. Tenant didn't dispute that she was a tenant of record while the overcharge was collected and that roommate was charged 41 percent of the monthly rent. Rent Stabilization Code Section 2525.7 permitted tenant only to divide the monthly legal rent by the number of tenants and occupants. Since there were three apartment occupants, tenants could collect only one-third of the rent from roommate.

Ruliffson: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. EX410065RO (9/20/17) [3-pg. doc.]