Tenant Dissatisfaction with New Balcony Didn't Bar MCI Increase

Landlord applied to the DHCR for MCI rent hikes based on exterior restoration work and related architectural services. The DRA ruled for landlord. Tenants appealed and lost. Among other things, tenants claimed that the balcony work was defective. They argued that the new balcony terraces didn't provide as much privacy as the preexisting ones and that rainwater pooled on the terrace floors. The DHCR found that these claims amounted merely to dissatisfaction with the way that the new terraces had been designed. It was longstanding DHCR policy that such claims didn't mean that the items in question were improperly installed due to poor workmanship. There also was no requirement for a new installation to exactly replicate the design and operation of the items that were replaced. 

Carpenter, Charnis: DHCR Adm. Rev. Docket No. EM120021RT (10/16/20) [3-pg. doc.]